Index
Najaf – E – Ashraf
Hauza – E - Ilmia
Problems faced by the Scholars with regards to their children’s education.
Bab Ul Ilm Public School – a brief prologue
Establishment of Bab UL Ilm School
Current Status of the School
Statement of Teaching & Non Teaching Staff
Class-wise student enrolment
Recommendations to move forward :
Administrative Recommendations
Operational Recommendations
Financial Recommendations
Curriculum Recommendations
Special Recommendation - Train the Trainer Approach
Special Recommendation – Establish new English Medium Pre-Nursery / Kindergarten School
Current School-Budget Projection for next 6 Months
Future Expansion / Plan
New School projection for 24 months
BAB-UL-ILM
English School for expatriates in Najaf-E-Ashraf, Iraq
Najaf – E – Ashraf
Najaf-E-Ashraf has been a pinnacle of Islamic Studies for centuries. The holy presence of the original “Bab Ul Ilm” Hazrat Ali Ibne Abi Talib (A.S.) in this city further accentuates its allure for those who seek knowledge.
This Center of religious education unfortunately saw a shattering decline during Saddam’s era. The study centers were forcibly closed down. Several religious scholars and experts were tortured and assassinated. Nevertheless, a few students persisted and continued their quest for knowledge.
Hauza – E - Ilmia
With the regime change, Najaf - E –Ashraf, once again began attracting scholars from all over the world as the Hauza-E-Ilmia was revived. Currently, there are over 1000 students in the seminaries from the Urdu-speaking expat community (Pakistan, India, Afghanistan and other nations). These students, majority of whom are married, stay with their families for a average period of 15 years in Najaf.
Problems faced by the Scholars as regards their children’s education.
The most pressing concern of these students while their tenure in Najaf is the education of their own children. There are no suitable schools catering the needs of the expat community in Najaf. Hence, the children of the scholars remain uneducated, resulting in major assimilation problems in their home countries.
This has resulted in many negative consequences:
- Hauza scholarshave started discontinuing their education and migrating back to their home countries.
- Some are staying without family and have to bear the additional burden of their families back home.
- Some scholars dedicate time to privately educate their own children and thus compromising on their own learning capacity.
Bab Ul Ilm Public School – a brief prologue
It, therefore, became imperative to establish an English medium school, based on internationally recognized curriculum in Najaf. This prompted a Pakistani scholar Sheikh Ahmed Hussain along with his associates to take an initiative in this direction. With meager resources, they founded the “Bab-Ul-Ilm Public School Trust” to establish Bab-Ul-Ilm Public School in 2008. The key purpose for establishing the school was to cater to the children from non-Arabic-speaking communities, especially those of Indian and Pakistani origin.
In July 2011, Mr. Syed Saif Ali Naqvi visited Iraq from Muscat (Oman)for Ziyarat and was informed of this endeavor. He established contact with Shaikh Ali Najafi, son of Ayatullah Shaikh Bashir Najafi, in Najaf. A meeting was arranged with the school administration and it became clear that the institution required immediate professional educational help for it to function effectively.
In this connection, Lt. Col (rtd) Ghulam Hassan Naqvi, Chairman and Managing Trustee of Human Development Trust, Pakistan visited Najaf and drafted a feasibility report. A committee was formed under his leadership, which decided on the following pre-requisites.
-Appointment of a qualified and experienced Principal.
-Appointment qualified and trained teachers.
-Leasing proper premises (i.e. School Building).
-Registration with Pakistani Federal Education Board.
-Furnishing class rooms.
-Provision of proper teaching aids
Establishment of Bab UL Ilm School
Based on the recommendations of the committee, premises for school was rented for 2 years starting Oct 19, 2011 and Mr. Qalb E Abbas from Pakistan was appointed as Principal on Dec. 27, 2012. The lease has been further extended was for10 month on completion of lease on Oct 19, 2013.
Current Status of the School
-The current strength of 172 children. (94 males/78 females) make up class 1 – 6
-The currently rented building (US$ 10000 per annum) is insufficient to accommodate 172 students.
-The classrooms lack basic furniture and are small, dark, without proper air ventilation
-The school lacks sanitation facilities. (1 washroom for 172 students and 10 teachers)
-Most of the teachers are the wives of Hauza students and hence are not trained.
-The school lacks proper tools and training aids for teachers.
-There is no play area for children or availability of toys.
-There is a single room that is used as common office and teachers room hence female teachers rarely use the facility due to hijab issue.
-All the children are not able to even pay their monthly fee of US$ 10.00 and urgently need sponsors
-The ‘Uswa Public School System from Pakistan has extended some support by sharing its curriculum.
-School is yet to be registered with appropriate local Iraqi Educational Authorities and Pakistan Federal Educational Board.
-Trained teachers cannot be recruited as visas would be issued only with registration of the school with the local Iraqi Ministry of Education
-The school in its current form cannot be registered with Federal Board of Education. The registration with Federal Board requires to demonstrate sufficient capacity, appropriate learning environment, and availability of trained teaching staff.
Bab-Ul-Ilm Public School Najaf E AshrafStatement of Teaching & Non Teaching Staff
S. # / Position / Number / Male / Female1 / Principal / 1 / 1
2 / Teachers / 10 / 10
3 / Clerk / 1 / 1
4 / Sweeper / 1 / 1
Totals / 13 / 2 / 11
Class wise student enrolment
S. # / Name of Class / Strength / Male / Female1 / Play / 31 / 20 / 11
2 / Nursery / 31 / 15 / 16
3 / Prep / 20 / 14 / 6
4 / Class 1 / 31 / 9 / 22
5 / Class 2 / 22 / 14 / 8
6 / Class 3 / 10 / 5 / 5
7 / Class 4 / 13 / 9 / 4
8 / Class 5
9 / Class 6 / 14 / 8 / 6
Totals / 172 / 94 / 78
Recommendations to move forward:
Administrative Recommendations
-Setting up of two committees
- Management Committee – Administrator, Principal and other external key professionals who will oversee the professional development of the school
- Advisory committee – Local scholars who currently make up the team that oversee the current functioning of the school and would help in Liaising with the local educational ministry and authorities.
- The committee should seek the registration criterion from the local ministry of education and Pakistan/Indian education boards.
Operational Recommendations
-As the new temporary premises would take 4 – 6 months to complete it is recommended to renovate the existing premises to make it safe for students
- White washing
- Furniture Repair etc.
-Reduce male involvement in day to day functioning of the school to enable female teachers and Principal to function freely and effectively.
-Single interface recommended with the male team – Shaikh Ali Muddabbir
-Urgent local recruitment of two trained female teachers for
- English
- Mathematics
-Current teachers to be trained in their subjects/computers usage and allocated to classes according to their individual potential
-Encourage use of computers for all typing purposes by teachers.
Financial Recommendations
-Effective budgeting to take care of operational expenses for the next 6 months
-All list of present and potential donors to be drawn up and communications need to be established immediately to seek operational funds
-All students who are not able to pay their fee to be identified and sponsorships to be obtained through various donors.
-Establish systems to take care of attendance & fee collection.
-Recruit 1 female clerk to take care of fee collection & admissions
-1 Male member of the advisory committee to attend at fixed times to deal with male parents
-2 year Operational budgeting for the new temporary premises.
Curriculum Recommendations
-The current curriculum to be reviewed
-Lucid workbooks based on the curriculum to be added to help the students understand better
-Teachers to be trained to
- Create and follow Daily, weekly & Annual lesson plans
- Use simple teaching aids
- Adopt more practical approach to teaching by using live examples
-Encourage extra curricular / curricular activities to make study interesting for the students
-Establish lively atmosphere /activities for career enhancement of teaching staff
Special Recommendation - Train the Trainer Approach
-It is virtually impossible & expensive to maintain external professionals on the payroll hence it is recommended to invite trained professionals to visit Bab Ul Ilm Public school on vocational basis 1 – 2 months
- The school would maintain a guest house to lodge the visiting professionals
- The school to provide food & transport to the visiting professionals
-The visiting professionals would
- Guide the teachers on their day to day teaching
- Help the teacher to maintain upto date professional notes & documentation
- Take mock classes and explain the methodology of modern teaching practices
- Train the teachers in their respective subjects
-The visiting professionalsif required could conduct extra classes for teachers and students to upgrade the standard.
-The school through its advisory committee would arrange ziarat visits for the visitors
-The Advisory team members would special Islamic Crash Courses for the visiting professionals
Special Recommendation – Establish new English Medium Pre-Nursery/Kindergarten School
-New Pre-primary Kindergarten school to be established to cater to the younger pre school generation
-They could be trained in English Medium using modern phonetic and other modern educational systems to help set up a solid base for the future generation.
-These students to be admitted in the Bab Ul Ilm Public School when the come of age.
-Special care to be taken at this level to ensure maximum benefits to the children and their parents as the parents could also spend sometime for self development and up- gradation through special courses and evening classes held at Bab Ul Ilm Public School.
Current School- Budget Projection for next 6 Months
S. # / Account Head / Cost in US$ / Duration / Total US$ / Per month in US$1 / Renovation / 1,000.00 / 1 / 1,000.00
2 / Salaries / 1,650.00 / 6 / 9,900.00
3 / Sweeper / 150.00 / 6 / 900.00
4 / Clerk / 200.00 / 6 / 1,200.00
5 / Maid / 100.00 / 6 / 600.00
6 / Rent / 850.00 / 6 / 5,100.00
7 / Water & Tea / 150.00 / 6 / 900.00
8 / Stationary / 120.00 / 6 / 720.00
9 / Tel/Internet/Water/Elec / 150.00 / 6 / 900.00
10 / Misc Repair / 20.00 / 6 / 120.00
11 / Taxi / 30.00 / 6 / 180.00
12 / Guest House / 200.00 / 6 / 1,200.00
22,720.00 / 3,786.67
Income
1 / Student Sponsorship / 350.00 / 6 / 2,100.00
2 / Student fee collections / 60.00 / 180 / 10,800.00
3 / Grant from Aqa Sistani / 416.00 / 6 / 2,496.00
4 / Sponsored Teacher Bonus / 50.00 / 6 / 300.00
5 / Sponsored Rent / 850.00 / 6 / 5,100.00
20,796.00
Short Fall / -1,924.00 / -320.67
Future Expansion / Plan
- Move into a new but temporary premises section (proposed by Ayatollah Misbah / Syed Ala ) which is presently under construction as Howza Student accommodation.
- This is 6 kms away & will require Bus transportation
- Initiate School Registration procedure with Authorities
- Transport arrangements would be required though to/from school to the shrine area
- Teachers Training - Local teachers would be trained using visiting professionals
- A TV with Internet facility for the Teachers & senior students to be established to make them computer savvy as well use the facility for distance training/e-learning.
- Support from Uswa for Curriculum , Books , etc
- Charge fees from those who can afford & subsidize the Howza students children
- Raise funding for both Capital expenditure required & running costs for medium term
New School projection for 24 months
S. # / Account Head / Cost in US$ / Duration / Total US$ / Per month in US$1 / Furniture (in Future) / 13,322.00 / 1 / 13,322.00
2 / Playground / 1,000.00 / 1 / 1,000.00
3 / Computers / 5,000.00 / 1 / 5,000.00
4 / Safe / 400.00 / 1 / 400.00
5 / Water Dispenser / 600.00 / 1 / 600.00
6 / Salaries / 3,300.00 / 24 / 79,200.00
7 / Sweeper / 250.00 / 24 / 6,000.00
8 / Clerk / 250.00 / 24 / 6,000.00
9 / Maid / 100.00 / 24 / 2,400.00
10 / Teacher (English & Maths) / 1,200.00 / 24 / 28,800.00
11 / Water & Tea / 150.00 / 24 / 3,600.00
12 / Stationary / 120.00 / 24 / 2,880.00
13 / Tel/Internet/Water/Elec. / 150.00 / 24 / 3,600.00
14 / Misc. Repair / 50.00 / 24 / 1,200.00
15 / Taxi / 30.00 / 24 / 720.00
16 / Transport / 2,700.00 / 24 / 64,800.00
17 / Watchman / 250.00 / 24 / 6,000.00
18 / Car / 27,000.00 / 1 / 27,000.00
19 / Driver / 300.00 / 24 / 7,200.00
20 / Guest House / 200.00 / 24 / 4,800.00
264,522.00 / 11,021.75
11/10/20181