Usman Ali, Lecturer, Department of Education, School of Social Sciences and Humanities, UMT has been awarded the prestigious Charles Wallace Fellowship for an academic visit to the University of Portsmouth, United Kingdom. These fellowships, offered by The Charles Wallace Pakistan Trust in collaboration with the British Council, aim to enable mid-career academics to widen their professional knowledge, skills and international linkages.
Usman is currently visiting the School of Education and Sociology, University of Portsmouth. Apart from professional familiarization and networking, he is working on the contrastive study on the role of educational leadership in madrassa education in Pakistan and the United Kingdom. During his trip to the UK, he would investigate how madrassa education has adapted practice away from its primary concern by specifically focusing on the development of character and knowledge of its students through the moral example of the teacher; instead, the secondary concern about institutionalizing the transmission of knowledge is now to the fore in terms of Research Learning Communities.
Academics at UK University and Usman would be sharing experiences of researching education in the Global South, especially in the context of achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals 4 and 5, enhancing quality education and ensuring gender equity through access to lifelong learning. As specialists, they are committed to diversifying their educational provision. This visit will help to promote knowledge transfer amongst specialists in the UK and Pakistan when it comes to learning how madrassa education reflects the changing needs of Muslim citizens beyond the current security narrative promoted by state actors.
