Current 2-year STEP programme

The MA in Muslim Societies and Civilisations offers students a systematic and critical interdisciplinary examination of Muslim histories, cultures and societies.

It helps develop:

• sound scholarly skills,
• capacity for critical analysis,
• methodological and research skills,
• clear communications skills.

The MA is aimed at:

1. Developing and cultivating a systematic understanding and engagement with subject knowledge pertaining to the interdisciplinary field of Islamic Studies, with particular focus on societal, civilisational and humanistic-informed approaches.
2. Fostering capacity to conduct an insightful and critical review of relevant literature in all pertinent subject areas, as well as creativity and independence of thought in the application of knowledge.
3. Fostering capacity to critically evaluate current issues and recent developments in the field and arrive at sound critical insights using research methodologies in the study of humanities and social sciences in Muslim contexts.
4. Develop a range of practical and intellectual skills that contribute to:
   1. the critical evaluation of scholarship, literature and research in Islamic studies, religious studies, and the humanities at the postgraduate level;
   2. a systematic understanding of how established and emerging techniques of research and enquiry are used to create and interpret knowledge;
   3. independence of thought in the application of knowledge, and the creative and critical handling, presenting and analysis of data.
5. Acquiring a systematic grasp of established and evolving ways of communication and presentation for this field of study, while producing postgraduate-level coursework that shows criticality, clarity, focus and cogency in organisation and presentation of arguments and conclusions.

Upon successful completion of the MA, students acquire a series of subject-specific knowledge and intellectual skills, as well as subject-based practical and transferable skills.

The PGDip provides a comprehensive teacher education programme, fostering academic rigour as well as practical understanding and application of theories. The approach integrates academic theory with a well-supported teaching practice.

As a STEP student you will be provided with learning opportunities to develop high academic and professional standards and to apply critical reflection as a basis for personal continuous professional development beyond the course. We will encourage you to learn how to contextualise curricula and transfer theories and practical strategies from one context to another.

Successful graduates should:

• Understand key aspects of the field of study and practice (e.g. understanding learning theories, teaching strategies and reflective practices, how to lead learners, learning in specific contexts, and how to develop classroom materials).
• Be able to explore, analyse, discuss, and reflect critically, systematically and with academic rigour on teaching and learning and teachers’ roles within communities of practice and as curriculum developers.
• Be able to communicate their own learning and development in a range of outputs.

All students are provided with invaluable support from Professional Learning Community (PLC) facilitators and experienced mentors. A STEP student must complete all the Teaching Practice components before they are recognised as a STEP teacher.

The teaching practice consists of several components:

• Comprehensive, practical, field-based school/teaching experiences in mainstream schools in or near London and at Religious Education Centres (RECs) in the United Kingdom or Europe;
• Teaching practice in the Ismaili Religious Education Centres in participants’ own home contexts;
• Lesson planning tutoring and field mentoring through the platform of PLCs;
• Portfolio of Work.

Students are provided with personal, mainly humanities-based, timetables and individually supported to plan, support, and lead lessons. In addition, students will be encouraged to observe a range of teaching practice across the school, to attend school-based training and meetings where relevant, and to engage in a range of other school-based experiences such as educational visits and extracurricular clubs.

Students will be supported in their developmental teaching practice with formative lesson observations and written feedback, regular teaching reviews, and a joint UCL tutor and school-based mentor observation. Students’ school-based learning is the foundation of the first-year written assignments, which develop reflective practice and enquiry as sustainable approaches to teacher learning. Students will have access to a school-based mentor who provides professional guidance and support in the development of their teaching practices.

The Portfolio will allow participants to consolidate their MA and PGDip experiences and their integration with classroom practices, as well as provide a basis for writing their summative assignments and sustain their continued professional development.

There are further elements of STEP, designed and delivered by IIS, which are not part of the accredited modules for the MA and PGDip. Nevertheless, these enrichments are an important and mandatory element of the programme in terms of preparing participants to return to their home countries and take up their posts as STEP teachers.

• Teaching and Learning
  A series of Teaching and Learning sessions delivered at IIS complement and further enhance Teaching and Learning provision, gained through PGDip at UCL IOE, in order to teach in secondary classrooms of RECs.
• Research Methods
  Research study for the MA is desk-based (or, secondary research), which involves identifying and carrying out a systematic review, evaluation and analysis of existing secondary source material and data sets. It entails a systematic investigation by students of an approved topic of their choice, and is aimed at developing a student’s expertise in a specific field as related to the broader aims of IIS’ Secondary Curriculum. Students will be exposed to a range of sessions to help them develop key practical and analytical skills and approaches required for writing a professional-level research paper, including: selecting a topic and formulating a specific research question; identifying and carrying out a systematic review of secondary source material; analysing and synthesising data sets; and presenting results in a written form according to highest academic standards.
• Induction into the Field
  During the final term of the second year of study, all graduating students will receive sessions aimed to support their transition from full-time students to full-time STEP teachers. Using the experiences of experienced STEP teachers from the field, students will learn about the day-to-day realities of teaching as well as working within the context of an ITREB structure.

The sessions also discuss the wider mandate of ITREB and how that corresponds to the work of IIS. In doing so, it articulates the mandate and philosophy of STEP and how it seeks to add value to the formation of the JamatAssembly or religious congregation; also a term used by the Nizari Ismailis for their individual communities.. Students will also be given an insight into the nature of the collaboration between IIS and ITREB, and how they will continue to be supported by both institutions after their graduation.

IIS’ Secondary Curriculum adopts an approach to the study of Islam based on humanistic, civilisational and normative perspectives. It seeks to acquaint secondary students with the diverse and dynamic interplay of Islamic expressions – religious, social, cultural and material – that have become manifest in Muslim societies of the past and present.

The curriculum applies pedagogical approaches in harmony with its philosophical framework. It calls for a profile of teachers with a broad set of proficiencies that reflects acquaintance with a range of contexts. These pedagogical approaches invite the active engagement of teachers and students with the content of the curriculum, engendering thought and enquiry on Islam generally and the Ismaili tradition specifically as they have developed historically and in contemporary times.

More details can be found on the Secondary Curriculum page.

Unique to our programme, and as part of the MA, students will experience an exploratory field trip to Andalusia, Spain, in the first year of the programme.* This trip facilitates a deeper understanding of curricula content and the collection of relevant resources to teach it.

Visits during this trip usually include: the Great Mosque of Cordoba, which is the only surviving monument of the Caliphate of Cordoba; Madinat al Zahra Museum, which was awarded an Aga KhanA title granted by the Shah of Persia to the then Ismaili Imam in 1818 and inherited by each of his successors to the Imamate. Award for Architecture in 2010; and the magnificent palaces, fountains and gardens of Alhambra, which exemplify the blending of Moorish and traditional Andalusian architecture.

The experiences realised through the field trip will provide students with a unique perspective in their approach to the delivery of IIS’ Secondary Curriculum, in which the study of Muslim societies and civilisations is a crucial element.