This book examines the educational, social and career aspirations of teenage Muslim girls in the context of their present experiences in contemporary Britain. It endeavours to explicate the lives of these adolescents by illuminating the same issues from three different perspectives: the girls, the parents and the teachers.
The study portrays adolescence, as experienced by these girls, as a period of hope and expectation, rather than a time of stress, confusion and rebellion. The girls are optimistic about the future and, though largely working class, have middle class aspirations. They hope to effectuate these ambitions through the mediums of education and careers, yet they also want to get married and have children. These girls have supportive families whose values are moulded to a large extent by an Islamic ethos and who want to help these adolescent girls to realise their multiple aspirations. However, the teachers, by and large, not only perceive these aspirations as unrealistic, but they also misunderstand the various religious and cultural mores of these families.
While the girls aspirations are being shaped by the views of the parents and, to some extent, of the teachers, they are not replicating the lives of their parents and teachers. Indeed, they are active participants in shaping their own multiple identities and aspirations by means of a subtle combination of negotiation and persuasion.
Tehmina N. Basit
Inservice Education and Management Unit
Department of Education
University of Keele
This book explores the reality of Muslim Girls lives in Britain and their educational, social and career aspirations. It is an antidote to stereotypes and should be read by all those interested in the creation of a tolerant multicultural Britain.
Professor Sally Tomlinson
Pro-Warden and Dean of Education
Goldsmiths College
University of London
Eastern Values; Western Milieu
For
My Mother And My Late Father
With Love
First published 1997 by Ashgate Publishing
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Copyright Tehmina N. Basit 1997
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British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
Basit, Tehmina N.
Eastern values, Western milieu : identities and aspirations of adolescent British Muslim girls
1. Muslim girls - Great Britain 2. Teenage girls - Great Britain
I. Title
305.2'35'088'2971
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 97-72267
ISBN 13: 978-1-85972-503-0 (hbk)
Contents
I am indebted to many individuals for their stimulation, support, confidence, encouragement, help, guidance, comments and criticism:
Foremost is my Ph.D. supervisor Peter Mitchell whose patient and meticulous guidance made this research conceivable and whose comments were always a source of inspiration. Also, my Ph.D. advisers Madeleine Arnot and Rex Walford for their invaluable advice at various stages of the research.
A number of other people at the Department of Education, University of Cambridge, including academic, administrative, secretarial, technical and library staff, especially to Sheila Hakin and her team at the department library, and to Glyn Baker for technical assistance.
Various people at Churchill College, Cambridge, notably my tutor Alan Findlay for his help. Also, Churchill College for some financial aid in the form of a bursary and travel grant. Furthermore, the staff at the Cambridge University library who have always been extremely helpful.
The girls, parents and teachers who constituted the sample for the research and whose tolerance and candour made this study possible. Also the girls, parents and teachers who participated in the pilot study and the educators and educationalists with whom I had informal discussions before starting the field work.
My mother Salma Hakeem Mian and my late father Abdul Hakeem Mian for their love and nurture; my sister Tahira for her affection; my husband Abdul Basit for his tremendous support; my daughter Labina for her help with checking references and proof-reading; and my son Haseeb and my daughter Ifrah for their patience during my period of study and the preparation of this book.
My thanks are due to the following publishers for their permission to include material in the text:
The Islamic Academy for material included in from I Want to Go to College: British Muslim Girls and the Academic Dimension of Schooling, published in Muslim Education Quarterly, vol. 12, no. 3, 1995, pp. 36-54.
Carfax publishing for material included in from Id Hate to be Just a Housewife: Career Aspirations of British Muslim Girls, published in the British Journal of Guidance and Counselling, vol. 24, no. 2, 1996, pp. 227-242.
The Islamic Academy for material included in from Obviously Ill Have an Arranged Marriage: Muslim Marriage in the British Context, published in Muslim Education Quarterly, vol. 13, no. 2, 1996, pp. 4-19.
Carfax Publishing Company for material included in from I Want More Freedom, but not too Much: British Muslim Girls and the Dynamism of Family Values, forthcoming in Gender and Education, 1997.
The British Muslims
Britain has a history of immigrant and refugee settlement over a long period. The peoples who have adopted Britain as their home country not only originate from other European countries, but also from various other parts of the globe, notably Africa and Asia. Over the years, the European immigrants have, by and large, become integrated into mainstream British society mainly due to cognate features, such as skin colour and religion, with the exception of Jews who might still adhere to certain aspects of their religion and culture. The African-Caribbeans and Asians, on the other hand, remain conspicuous because of the colour of their skin. Phinney and Rotheram (1987) observe that these groups have a caste-like status based on appearance, which means they can never be completely assimilated.
Nevertheless, appearance is only part of their predicament. Whilst the African-Caribbeans share the language and religion of the indigenous group, the Asian immigrants have a different heritage language and practise a different religion depending on the part of Asia they originate from. They might speak Bengali, Hindi, Punjabi and Urdu amongst other languages and could be Muslims, Hindus or Sikhs: the main religions practised in South Asia. They may also retain certain features related to their cultural traditions. Consequently, British Asians, even second or third generation, who adhere to their language, religion or culture of origin, might be perceived as foreigners.
Over the years, the descendants of many of the first generation immigrants of Asian origin have gradually assimilated into British society by adapting to various British customs and traditions. However, they only adapt to a certain extent and preserve specific characteristics of their cultural heritage. This phenomenon is referred to as pluralism, whereby the immigrants retain their structural and cultural identity, yet participate in institutions such as education and employment (cf. Verma and Bagley, 1979:8; Anwar, 1985).
