Students Take Tour of Mosque in UK as Part of Inter-Faith Initiative
The visit was part of the GCSE Citizenship course taught at Darwen Aldridge Enterprise Studio School (DAES).
Students from Years’ 9, 10 and 11 were welcomed by madressaa head teacher, Maulana Abbas who gave a tour of the mosque, which is based in Oak Street.
There was also reading of some Islamic poetry, literature, and the Quran. At the end of the visit, students were invited by the Imam to take part in a question-and-answer session and later sampled food prepared by science teacher Mr Hussain.
This was the first time some pupils had stepped foot inside a mosque.
Citizenship teacher Ms Arnone said: “The whole trip for me was a fabulous way of sharing culture and knowledge of the Islamic faith.
"The mosque trip and the Imam were so friendly, and it was a joy to see our students so engaged in the process.”
“The mosque was a very welcoming place from the moment we walked in to when we left. We were all mesmerised by the beauty of the prayer rooms and the education that takes place in the mosque.
“We left feeling uplifted by the experience. The Imam inspired the students to think about other cultures and beliefs and spoke openly about his faith and his journey to becoming an Imam.
"Overall, this was an experience that I would recommend to anyone no matter what faith they belong to.”
Maulana Abbas said: “I thoroughly enjoyed spending time with all the students and staff. The behaviour was superb.
“All of the students were very respectful and a credit to their school. The teachers are doing an amazing job and I hope we can have many more events like this organised for everyone. Well done to all involved."
Principal, Colin Grand said: “This has been a great opportunity for our students to develop their cultural capital knowledge and I would like to thank all involved for making the experience most memorable.
“We pride ourselves of developing our students beyond what we teach in the classroom and a visit like this really does complement the curriculum and develops our young people with their wider knowledge.
"We look forward to developing further partnerships with Madina Mosque for future opportunities.
“We would like to thank all the Madina Mosque committee members and volunteers for allowing students and teachers from Darwen Aldridge Enterprise Studio to visit and raise awareness of the importance of promoting community cohesion of different faiths for everyone to experience."
Source: lancashiretelegraph.co.uk
