Dar Nafisa Academy

Dar Nafisa Academy was established in the late 2014 by a handful of friends when we saw a pressing need to solve the problem of radicalisation among the youths in our society. Simultaneously, we also felt that the pedagogy of teaching Islam needs to go through an overhaul. The current traditional method of children’s Islamic education with a high focus of memory work of laws and the Quran are ins

ufficient should we want to target and curb the problems prevailing in the community. Our concerns brewed a unanimous consensus to provide a more holistic and inquiry-based weekend Islamic program for school-aged children and youths. With the rise of Islamophobia and radicalisation due to a paucity of an in-depth understanding of Islam, both by Muslims and non-Muslims, the founders of Dar Nafisa Academy acknowledge the critical need of seeking a more constructive solution to overcome this complex dilemma. As such, our team’s response is to act and not react. At Dar Nafisa Academy, we recognise that IGNORANCE has been the persistent core impetus in driving a wide wedge into the vibrant yet delicate fabric of any society. Hence, we aim to equip our students with a “thinking cm spiritual tool kit” in shaping constructive and effective decisions in the face of these unprecedented challenges. We also strive to generate both creative and positive thinkers who stand tall and take pride in their faith despite the negativities which encapsulates them. It is also crucial to send the message to our students that Islam extends beyond a set of laws, particularly the clichéd halal and haram. Irrespective of the backlash propagated in the media, an awareness that Islam is timeless, imbued with logical solutions for the most even intricate conundrum is vital in the education of our younger generation. Through the course of our work, our team acknowledged that there needs to be a heightened awareness of the importance of education in the Muslim community. Henceforth, we further strive to create a learned community by helping parents to support their children academically and emotionally through the provision of relevant workshops. To achieve our goals, we believe in returning to the core tenet of Islam which is the lifelong quest for education. This is aligned with the Quran’s first commandment to mankind which is “READ”. Through a meticulously-designed curriculum, we want our students at Dar Nafisa Academy to relate and pitch the relevancy of the Quran’s content and the Prophet Muhammad’s (peace be upon him) sayings to their current contexts. The non-threatening and stimulating classroom setting encourage students to pose the most sensitive of questions pertaining to social concerns and common misconceptions tagged to Islam. We encourage our students to remove their inhibitions for questioning and speaking up when necessary. We want our students to also realise that they have a voice and to use this voice of knowledge and intellect to make positive changes in the community, society and hopefully on a global scale. Above all, the process of self-reflection and internalisation of the faith is incumbent with our philosophy of maintaining humility in the pursuit of knowledge and success