The American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences 29:1140

Classical Foundations of Islamic Educational Thought: 
A Compendium of English-Arabic Texts

Bradley J. Cook and Fathi H. Malkawi, ed.

Provo, UT: Brigham Young University Press. August 2011, hbk, 305 
pages.

Over	the	past	decade,	discussions	on	Islamic	educational	thought	have	be-
come popular mainly due to the political situation particularly as it con-
cerns	the	interaction	between	Islam	and	the	West.	However,	regardless	of	
political considerations, most Western scholars seem to have paid less at-
tention to Islamic education as a concept worthy of attention. In this con-
text, Classical Foundations of Islamic Educational Thought, which is a 
recent publication on this topic, plays an exceptional role. Making some 
of	the	major	classics	on	Islamic	education	available	in	parallel	English-
Arabic texts, this volume is an indispensible compendium for students and 
scholars alike.

       The main editor, Bradley J. Cook, has a lot of practical experience 
in	the	field	of	Islamic	education.	In	addition	to	his	academic	endeavors	
and remarkable publications on education, Cook has had the advantage of 
teaching	in	a	number	of	Muslim	countries	including	Egypt	and	the	United	
Arab	Emirates,	where	he	also	held	several	executive	positions.	With	the	
assistance	of	Fathi	H.	Malkawi,	a	Jordanian-born	educator,	Cook	has	man-
aged to make a good selection of texts on a variety of educational subjects, 
which	reflect	both	educational	rules	in	classical	Islamic	thought	and	the	
holistic attitude of Muslim educators who consider learning as part of the 
moral and spiritual growth of those reading this volume. 

       The introduction of the book is an exposition of some basic ideas 
in Islamic education. Going through a brief historical survey of educational 
institutes in Islam, it explains major methodological concerns and the ob-
jectives of education for Muslim educators. The selected texts are arranged 
chronologically	from	Ibn	Saḥnūn	in	the	ninth	century,	to	Ibn	Khaldūn	in	
the fourteenth century, a period which has come to be known as the golden 
age of Islamic civilization. The authors come from different parts of the 
Islamic	Empire	‒	such	as	North	Africa,	Iraq,	Syria,	and	Persia.	Most	of	au-
thors	are	well-versed	in	Sunni	jurisprudence	with	the	exception	of	Ikhwān	
al-Ṣafā’,	who	is	claimed	by	Ismaili	Shias,	and	Ibn	Miskawayh,	who	served	
the	Shi‘a	Būyid	viziers.	

The	first	text,	which	is	by	Ibn	Saḥnūn,	is	of	historical	importance	be-
cause	it	is	the	first	handbook	of	teaching	in	Islamic	history.	It	reflects	the	



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legal	point	of	view	of	its	Mālikī	writer	in	emphasizing	the	rules	of	conduct	
for	those	who	teach	the	Qur’ān.	The	text	by	Ikhwān	al-Ṣafā’	has	a	unique	
position in the book since the authors are more concerned about the phi-
losophy of learning and less with the details of how a teacher teaches. They 
believe that “those who seek knowledge and search for the real natures 
of	things	should	first	know	what	knowledge	is.	.	 .”	(24).	Qābisī’s	view	
on	education	is	interesting	from	a	political	angle.	He	considers	the	educa-
tion of children to be the responsibility of the state, and he takes a critical 
stand on the educational practices of his time. Ibn Miskawayh is highly 
concerned	about	children’s	“refinement	of	character,”	which	is	possible	
through proper education. Good education can not only lead to intellectual 
growth	but	also	worldly	happiness.	For	him,	early	education	has	the	benefit	
of training the youth “to love virtue” and form the habit of self control. 
This is a necessary condition for reaching “the high ranks of philosophy” 
and “seeking proximity to God,” as well as “enjoying a good condition in 
this	world,”		such	as	“a	fine	reputation”	(86).

							Al-Ghazzālī’s	text	emphasizes	the	essential	relationship	between	
knowledge and action, which culminates in religious devotion. As he says, 
“The sum total of learning is to know the meaning of obedience and ser-
vice	[to	God]”	(96).	The	selected	text	is	mostly	focused	on	the	meaning	
of	learning	in	the	Islamic	context.	Al-Zarnūjī	deals	mostly	with	the	ethics	
of	education	‒	such	as	respect	for	knowledge	and	the	abstinence	from	evil	
during	learning.	Despite	his	poetic	style,	Al-Zarnūjī	offers	practical	tips	
‒	for	example,	on	how	to	strengthen	your	memory	by	“eating	twenty-one	
raisins,	red	ones,	each	day	on	empty	stomach”	(150).	Next	is	Ibn	Jamā‘ah,	
who in comparison to other scholars, shows the most systematic way of 
formulating	educational	rules	and	regulations	.	Rather	than	philosophiz-
ing	about	knowledge,	he	addresses	concrete	classroom	situations.	For	ex-
ample, he stresses that a teacher “should protect his class from clamor, for 
error is married to clamor. . . (167). The last text in the book is a selection 
from	Ibn	Khaldūn’s	al-Muqaddimah, which is one of the greatest classics 
in the history of Islam. This selection offered on education not only sets 
forth pedagogical techniques, but also gives invaluable information about 
different methods of instruction in several key Muslim cities of the time.

       All in all, Classical Foundations of Islamic Educational Thought 
has some merits, the most important of which is exposing the readers to 
original writings by classical Muslim scholars. This effect is reinforced by 
the high quality of translations which, though faithful to the original lan-
guage, does not sound too pedantic. Moreover, the translations are equally 
comprehensible and exact, despite the fact that they are done by different 
people	at	different	times.	And	finally,	the	editors	have	been	very	judicious	
about	the	notes	on	the	texts.	In	many	cases,	they	go	beyond	simply	filling	



The American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences 29:1142

the gaps, and provide comparative explanations that are extremely helpful 
to readers at all levels.

							However,	the	attitude	of	the	editors	toward	the	West-Islam	relation,	
as	implied	by	the	introduction,	fails	to	reflect	the	whole	truth.	In	the	section	
“Inadequacies	of	Western	Secular	Education	from	an	Islamic	Perspective”	
we read that Islamic theorists believe that Westernized philosophy of edu-
cation	exerts	“dissonant	influences”	on	education	in	Muslim	countries	due	
to the liberalist and secular attitude of the former. It is also said that “secu-
lar	education	strives	principally	for	‘critical	rationality’	.	.	.	,”	while	Mus-
lims along with Christians in the West object to the claims of critical ratio-
nality” xxix). Unfortunately, this may create a picture to the readers of an 
impenetrable	wall	between	Islamic	education	‒	which	in	the	introduction,	
is associated with an absolutist tradition on one side, and education in the 
secularized “relativist” West on the other. Such ideological formulations 
of apparently “essential” differences may act as a deterrent against mutual 
understanding and collaboration between the two educational systems. 

       There are also a few things that could have made this volume 
more	comprehensive	if	they	were	included.	First	would	be	an	explanation	
on why some major writers of the classical period do not have a place in 
the	selection.	For	example,	al-Jāhiz,	a	contemporary	of	Ibn	Saḥnūn	and	
the	first	Islamic	scholar,	is	not	included.	Written	from	a	Mu‘tazili	point	of	
view,	al-Jāhiz’s	The Book of Teachers could introduce more variety into the 
Mālikī		atmosphere	of	the	Classical Foundations of Islamic Educational 
Thought.	Moreover,	al-Jāhiz’s	focus	on	higher	education	could	comple-
ment	Ibn	Saḥnūn’s	text,	which	addresses	the	elementary	instructors.	This	
volume would also have been more comprehensive with the philosophical 
outlooks	of	al-Fārābī	and	Ibn	Sina	on	education.	There	are	also	some	great	
scholars	in	the	field	of	Islamic	education	who	are	surprisingly	left	out	of	
the	bibliography	‒	such	as	Sebastian	Günther,	Wadad	Kadi,	and	Tahir	Ab-
bas, to mention a few. 

							These	shortcomings	are	very	few	with	respect	to	the	significant	
mission Cook and Malkawi have managed to accomplish in this fantastic 
volume. These texts which were produced during the golden ages of Is-
lamic civilization can open the door to a better understanding of Muslim 
traditions with regard to education. Classical Foundations of Islamic Edu-
cational Thought is indispensable to anyone interested in educational ideas 
in Islam.

Sayeh Meisami
University of Toronto

Toronto, Canada