{"id":20292,"date":"2014-05-23T17:19:37","date_gmt":"2014-05-23T21:19:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/news\/?p=20292"},"modified":"2016-06-29T14:57:36","modified_gmt":"2016-06-29T18:57:36","slug":"iranian-islamic-women-scholars-embrace-model-of-interactive-teaching-at-summer-peacebuilding-institute","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/news\/2014\/iranian-islamic-women-scholars-embrace-model-of-interactive-teaching-at-summer-peacebuilding-institute\/","title":{"rendered":"Iranian-Islamic women scholars embrace model of interactive teaching at Summer Peacebuilding Institute"},"content":{"rendered":"

For two women from an Islamic seminary in Iran, one of the best parts about attending the 2014 Summer Peacebuilding Institute<\/a> at Eastern Mennonite University is experiencing an interactive style of teaching, where lengthy lectures are rare and role-playing is common.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe do lots of exercises, many projects, in this class,\u201d said Sabereh Ahmadi <\/span>Movaghar, referring to \u201c<\/span>Leadership for Healthy Organizations<\/span><\/a>\u201d taught as a seven-day intensive by David Brubaker<\/a>, PhD, and Roxann \u201cRoxy\u201d Allen Kioko \u201904, MA \u201907.<\/span><\/p>\n

Movaghar holds two master\u2019s degrees \u2013 one in Shi\u2019a Islam studies and the other in Islamic jurisprudence \u2013 which took a total of four years to earn. \u201cI love studying; I am hungry to know,\u201d she said by way of explaining her hope of continuing through a PhD and then teaching. For this reason, she has been an alert observer of the teaching methods employed in her current class at SPI and her previous one, \u201c<\/span>Faith-based Peacebuilding<\/span><\/a>,\u201d taught by <\/span>Roy Hange<\/span><\/a>, a Mennonite scholar and pastor.<\/span><\/p>\n

Movaghar also praises \u201cthe very good friends I have made here, who I\u2019ve invited to come to Iran,\u201d as well as the opportunity to learn more about conflicts in the world, along with post-conflict reconciliation processes, especially those occurring in Africa.<\/span><\/p>\n

Movaghar is one of nine <\/span>women from Qom, Iran, who are taking classes at EMU\u2019s annual Summer Peacebuilding Institute (SPI). Their home institution, Jamiat al-Zahra, is the world\u2019s largest Islamic seminary for women, with 5,000 Iranian students, 1,000 international students and 10,000 enrolled in distance learning. The nine students at SPI are all linked to the postgraduate section of the seminary\u2019s international department.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u201cThese women are excellent, diligent students,\u201d said J. Daryl Byler,<\/a> executive director of EMU\u2019s Center for Justice and Peacebuilding<\/a>. \u201cThey are devoutly religious as well as delightful \u2013 with great personalities, warm laughs, and deep insights. The friendships being built are priceless.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

The group is led by <\/span>Mohammad Shomali<\/span><\/a>, an internationally known scholar of Islam and dean of postgraduate students at Jamiat al-Zahra. Shomali has designated the women\u2019s English-language instructor, who wishes to be known as \u201cZainab,\u201d as the coordinator for the women when he is not present.<\/span><\/p>\n

Reflecting on her methods of teaching English at the Iranian seminary, Zainab cited the \u201cpractical strategies used at SPI\u201d as a key take-away from her two SPI classes. She said she also appreciates the \u201crich experiences\u201d enabled by having highly diverse classmates from different parts of the world. The atmosphere at SPI is \u201cwarm, open, and friendly,\u201d she said. \u201cEveryone is respectful of everyone\u2019s beliefs.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Zainab is often mistaken as one who comes from outside the United States, given her fully covered appearance in loose black clothing, except for her face. Actually, though, she is an American of Lebanese heritage, who completed most of her foundational education in public schools in Michigan. She holds a bachelor\u2019s and master\u2019s degree in English from the University of Michigan, plus a teaching certificate. <\/span><\/p>\n

In addition to directing the English as a Second Language program at Jamiat al-Zahra \u2013 in which about 45 women are enrolled each year \u2013 Zainab is completing a PhD. For her dissertation, she is working on a textbook that will use religiously and culturally appropriate text as the basis for teaching English to non-native speakers within the <\/span>Shi\u2019a Islamic tradition.<\/span><\/p>\n

In her first SPI class, \u201c<\/span>Understanding Psychosocial Trauma<\/span><\/a>\u201d taught by Dr. <\/span>Al Fuertes<\/span><\/a>, Zainab joined participants from 10 other countries to explore the social, psychological, neurobiological, physical, and spiritual processes of moving from violence to healing and transforming trauma. \u201cI\u2019ve studied sociology before, but never with a focus on the psychosocial aspects of trauma,\u201d she said, \u201cand rarely in a class as filled with activities. \u2026 Al was a great professor.\u201d<\/span> Zainab\u2019s<\/span> second class was \u201c<\/span>The Impact of Social Issues on Restorative Justice<\/span><\/a>\u201d<\/span><\/b><\/span> taught by <\/span>Carl Stauffer<\/span><\/a>, PhD, and <\/span>Jacqueline Roebuck Sakho<\/span><\/a>, MA \u201909.<\/span><\/p>\n

Movaghar and <\/span>Zainab<\/span> were part of two earlier educational trips to another Mennonite institution, Canadian Mennonite University in Winnipeg. In the summer of 2011, they took a one-week course on Christian understandings of peace and justice, followed by \u201cIntroduction to Christianity\u201d in June 2012.<\/span><\/p>\n

These women are the latest in a chain of Muslim-Mennonite interactions that goes back to 1991, when Mennonite Central Committee<\/a> responded to a devastating earthquake in Iran. Educational exchanges followed that first contact.<\/span><\/p>\n

Relations have grown to be highly collaborative. For instance, Shomali was a guest instructor in \u201cFaith-based Peacebuilding,\u201d which focused on identifying <\/span>sources of conflict and resources for peacebuilding found in several faith communities and traditions, along with interfaith engagement.<\/span><\/p>\n

During a break between SPI sessions, Shomali and most of the women went to Washington D.C., where they <\/span>visited the <\/span>Library of Congress<\/span><\/a>, <\/span>met with some Muslim women lawyers at the office of <\/span>the <\/span>El-Hibri Foundation<\/span><\/a>, and <\/span>had a meeting at <\/span>Georgetown University<\/span><\/a> organized by CJP graduate Rasoul Naqavi. They <\/span>also visited the Capitol Hill offices of Mennonite Central Committee<\/span>. <\/span><\/p>\n

E<\/span>d Martin<\/a>, director of the Center for Interfaith Engagement<\/a> at EMU, has visited Iran more than two dozen times since 1991 and will be returning to Iran later this month for the 6th Mennonite-Shi\u2019a dialogue. In addition to Martin, the EMU delegation includes Christian Early, a professor of philosophy and theology, and several students.<\/span><\/p>\n

On an earlier two-day trip, they visited MCC’s headquarters in Akron, Pennsylvania, met with an Amish bishop, and attended a service and Sunday school class at James Street Mennonite Church<\/a> in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. <\/span><\/p>\n

Shomali told an EMU reporter that he hoped for better relations between the people of Iran and people of the United States and noted\u00a0similarities between Quranic and Christian teachings about the importance of peace. \u201cGod says about the Quran in the Quran itself that God guides with the Qur\u2019an those who seek His pleasure to the ways of peace (5:15).\u201d There are \u201clots of things we can learn from each other,\u201d he added. Iranians are rational people and \u201cwhen you are rational, you tend to dialogue with people of other faiths and other cultures.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

Shomali welcomed more exchanges of Americans and Iranians from a variety of fields, including artists and professionals.\u00a0He said that to reduce mutual misperceptions and encourage peace,\u00a0\u201cNothing can replace face-to-face encounters. Our first Imam, Imam Ali, is quoted as saying: \u2018People become hostile towards what they don\u2019t know.\u2019\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

For two women from an Islamic seminary in Iran, one of the best parts about attending the 2014 Summer Peacebuilding Institute at Eastern Mennonite University is experiencing an interactive style ... read more about Iranian-Islamic women scholars embrace model of interactive teaching at Summer Peacebuilding Institute<\/span><\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":73,"featured_media":20323,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4515,12503,264,12499],"tags":[13825,10545,13680,15416,5668,15503,15469,6100,17361,15470,5690,6232,15501,9495],"feature":[],"class_list":["post-20292","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-academics","category-cjp","category-graduate-programs","category-spi","tag-carl-stauffer","tag-daryl-byler","tag-ed-martin","tag-el-hibri-foundation","tag-interfaith","tag-jacqueline-roebuck-sakho","tag-jamiat-al-zahra","tag-mennonite-central-committee","tag-mennonite-churches-and-schools","tag-mohammad-shomali","tag-peacebuilding","tag-restorative-justice","tag-roxann-allen-kioko","tag-roy-hange"],"yoast_head":"\nIranian-Islamic women scholars embrace model of interactive teaching at Summer Peacebuilding Institute - 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