State to set up first international Islamic school
KUCHING: The Sarawak government is collaborating with Madrasah Aljunied Al-Islamiah Singapore to establish the first international Islamic school in the state.
Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Tun Openg said the curriculum would be based on international Islamic syllabus.
“I have suggested this to Majlis Islam (Sarawak Islamic Council) on the setting up of this school,” he said during the opening of the ‘Ke Agungan Al-Quran’ colloquium at Sarawak Islamic Complex yesterday.
He said with this school, in future the state could send students and imams to Oxford University in United Kingdom to gain more knowledge.
“This is what I want to do for our Muslim children, and I can see all the children present here today will have a bright future,” he said.
In the meantime, the chief minister when approached by reporters to ask for details of the school, he requested Assistant Minister in Chief Minister’s Department (Islamic Affairs) Datuk Dr Abdul Rahman Junaidi to explain further.
Abdul Rahman said the school would be based on the current education system used in Madrasah Aljunied Al-Islamiah Singapore.
“The international Islamic school will start from pre-school to secondary school. And we have identified Ma’had Tahfiz Tun Abdul Rahman Ya’kub for pre-school, SK Agama Datuk Haji Abdul Kadir Hassan 2 in Jalan Sultan Tengah for primary school.
“Whereas for secondary school, SMK Agama Tun Ahmad Zaidi will be used,” he said.
He said the new schools were currently under construction and would take 18 months to be completed and expected to be operational by 2023.
He then said the medium of instruction would be English and Arabic so that it would be easier for the students to further their studies in the United Kingdom as well as renowned universities in the Middle East.
“The teaching at the schools later on will be available on an app which can be downloaded on phones or iPads. When students are unable to attend classes, they are still able to follow up on their lessons through the app,” he said.
