Event details
- Conference theme 1
- Call for abstracts 2
- Sub-themes 3
- Conference fees 4
Conference theme
At the heart of meaningful renewal in Islamic schooling lies tarbiyah, a holistic and lifelong process of human formation that nurtures the physical, spiritual, and intellectual dimensions of the human being. More than a pedagogical approach, tarbiyah offers an integrative framework through which knowledge, purpose, and practice are cultivated within an Islamic worldview.
This year’s 9th Islamic Schooling Conference places a deliberate focus on the tarbiyah of the educator, recognising that lasting renewal does not begin with programs, policies, or structures, but with the inward formation, outward character, and moral example of those entrusted with teaching and leadership. This emphasis shapes every aspect of schooling, from classroom practice and curriculum to leadership and school culture.
Within the broader framework of tarbiyah, taʿdīb (outward character refinement), taʿlīm (knowledge transmission), tadrīs (systematic and structured instruction), and tazkiyah (inward refinement) operate in synergy. When these elements are integrated rather than fragmented, education becomes coherent, purposeful, and transformative. Tarbiyah is therefore not merely a collection of techniques, but a formative ecosystem in which intellectual, spiritual, ethical, and physical development unfold together.
By centring the inward-to-outward trajectory of tarbiyah, the conference invites educators and leaders to reflect on who they are becoming, not only what they are implementing. When educators experience tarbiyah in their own lives, their inner transformation becomes the most powerful catalyst for renewed classrooms, coherent leadership, meaningful curriculum, and flourishing school communities. This is at the heart of tajdīd (renewal) in Islamic schools.
Bringing together scholars, school leaders, teachers, researchers, policymakers, parents, and community partners, the conference offers a shared space to reimagine Islamic education through its primary and purposeful aims. It is an invitation to place the formation of the educator at the heart of Islamic schooling renewal, and to re-anchor teaching and learning in the purposes for which knowledge exists.
Call for abstracts
Abstract guidelines:
- Author/s full name
- Affiliation
- Email address and contact number
- Title of Abstract
- Body of abstract 250–300 words
- Clearly indicate how the proposal relates to the conference theme
- Author/s biography 150 – 200 words (per person if multiple authors)
- Abstracts due by COB 15th of May 2026.
Sub-themes
- Understanding Tarbiyah: Meaning, Scope, and Centrality in Islamic Schooling
- Linguistic, Qurʾānic, and classical roots of tarbiyah.
- Tarbiyah as an overarching, holistic framework integrating taʿlīm, tadrīs, and taʾdīb
- Tarbiyah as the purposive aim guiding curriculum, leadership, and schooling.
- The Murabbī: Inward Formation as the Foundation of Educational Impact
- The educator’s spiritual, moral, intellectual, and volitional formation
- Tazkiyah, self-discipline, and ethical self-cultivation as prerequisites for teaching
- How the inward life of the educator shapes learners’ formation
- Teacher identity, educator wellbeing, and the amanah of nurturing fiṭrah.
- Tarbiyah-Informed Purpose: Re-articulating the Aims of Islamic Schooling
- Clarifying ghāyāt (primary aims) vs wasāʾil (instrumental aims)
- How tarbiyah shapes vision, mission, philosophy, and school coherence
- Aligning policies, governance, and culture with tarbiyah’s holistic ethos.
- Curriculum as Tarbiyah: Designing for Holistic Human Development
- Curriculum that nurtures the spiritual, intellectual, physical, and moral dimensions
- The place of Qurʾān, Arabic, and Islamic Studies within a tarbiyah framework
- Moving from fragmented curriculum to coherent tarbiyah-led design.
- Tarbiyah-Based Pedagogy: Teaching Rooted in Islamic Epistemology
- Reconnecting pedagogical practice to Islamic understandings of knowledge
- Teaching as an act of moral-spiritual formation, not only instruction
- Dialogical learning, intellectual humility, adab, and inquiry
- Classroom practices that embody compassion, justice, and ihsān.
- Assessment Through the Lens of Tarbiyah
- Rethinking success: assessing growth of the whole human being
- Holistic, formative, and character-sensitive assessment models
- Developing learner profiles aligned to tarbiyah
- Moving past reductive academic measurement toward meaningful evidence of flourishing.
- Leadership as Tarbiyah: Forming Leaders Who Form Others
- Leadership as an inward journey of amanah, sincerity, and ethical clarity
- Tarbiyah-informed decision-making and strategic planning
- Aligning governance, culture, and systems with purposive aims
- Creating schools of coherence, integrity, and ihsān.
- Building a Tarbiyah-Centred Educator Culture and Professional Pathways
- Islamic teacher education grounded in tarbiyah (beyond technique and training)
- Communities of practice that nurture spiritual, intellectual, and ethical growth
- Coaching, mentoring, and sustaining a culture of reflective murabbiyyīn.
- Tarbiyah Beyond the Classroom: Families, Community, and Society
- Home–school partnerships as shared tarbiyah ecosystems
- Community engagement that strengthens identity, purpose, and belonging
- Tarbiyah as a driver for social responsibility and public contribution.
- Research, Innovation, and the Future of Tarbiyah in Islamic Schooling
- Emerging scholarship on tarbiyah and Islamic educational philosophy
- Evidence-informed renewal: action research, case studies, and school innovations
- Navigating AI, digital life, and modernity through tarbiyah-grounded ethics.
Conference fees
Registration is $300 +GST, and inclusive of conference dinner.
Please email cite@adelaide.edu.au for an invoice.
Contact
For any queries regarding AAISC9, contact cite@adelaide.edu.au.