- Western social sciences make two false claims - that they are objective studies of universal facts when they are actually lessons derived from European historical experiences, and that their findings are iron laws applicable across time and space. - Social sciences were created in the early 20th century to replace Christianity as a basis for organizing society after religious wars discredited it. They restricted religion to personal beliefs and focused on worldly pleasures. - Islamic epistemology gives central importance to spirituality and life experiences as sources of knowledge, in conflict with Western theories that knowledge comes only from external facts. Changing the theory of knowledge could rapidly transform education.

1. Improving Our Educational
Systems Part 2
For Part 1, see: http://bit.ly/AZbIES1
Dr Asad Zaman
English Version of talk at GSCWU Bhawalpur on 4th Sep 2022

2. Summary of Part 1
• Western educational systems have been shaped by a theory of
knowledge (logical positivism) which says that Science is the only
valid form of knowledge.
• This has led to prioritization of study of external reality, and
abandonment of our internal reality. Life-experiences which lead to
spiritual growth are not part of the curriculum.
This 2nd part focuses on the role of the social sciences, which provide
normative ideals for European societies to follow, based on their own
analysis of their own historical experiences.

3. Birth of Social
Science in
early 20th Century
• Diminishing prestige of “humanities” – just talk,
not knowledge!
• Creation of “SOCIAL SCIENCE” in early 20th Century.
Economics, Psychology, Political Science, Business
Management, etc.
• Based on Logical Positivism: rejected human
internal experiences – heart, soul – as sources of
knowledge.
zSocial
Science
Humanities

4. Social SCIENCE makes TWO false claims:
• It is a study of FACTS, not opinions – “Science”
• These FACTS are Universal Truths – equally valid across time and
space, for ALL societies.
ONLY such facts – universally valid truths – are worthy of the name of
KNOWLEDGE, according to Logical Positivism

5. The First Claim:
Universal Applicability
to All Societies: is false
• Social Science is, and must be, study of human
societies.
• But WHICH society?
• Social Science consists of Lessons derived from
historical experience of European societies. NOT
Universally applicable AT ALL.
The Puzzle of Western Social Science
http://bit.ly/AZpss

6. The Second Claim: Iron
Laws applicable across
time and space (like those
of physics) is false
• Human beings are free to
choose between good and
evil.
• Their behavior is not
predictable, and not subject
to mathematical laws.

7. Why Does
Social Science
Make These
Obviously
False Claims?
To answer
this, we must
study the
history of
social science

8. Religious Wars => Rejection of Christianity
• Corruption of Catholic Church leads to REFORMATION
• Protestant factions rejects Catholicism. Wars between the two
factions being
• Over a century of deeply destructive religious wars in Europe.
• Social theory was done by schoolmen, scholastics, based on Bible.
• This was rejected as basis for organizing society.
• Because it led to continuous warfares both within and between
states.

9. Christianity: rejected as basis
for knowledge
Deep and fundamental beliefs (in Christianity), accepted by all
from top to bottom, had been proven wrong
The entire stock of (European) knowledge was in doubt.
It became necessary to rebuild the entire stock of knowledge,
starting from scratch.
All Enlightenment philosophers were be engaged in this task.

10. Social Science: Replacement for Christianity
Historical Experience of
European Societies showed
that Christianity was a failure at
providing principles for
organizing society.
It led to continuous warfare
and violence.

11. Social Science: Replacement for Christianity
Social Science was created as a
replacement for Christianity, to
provide a new set of principles
for organizing society.

12. Rejection of After-life:
Focus on Worldly Pleasures
• Social Sciences are in direct conflict with Islamic teachings.
• According to Economics, goal of life is to maximize pleasure
from consumption
• This is wrong.
• People do not actually do this.
• Nor should they do this.
• Real long-term happiness comes from character and social
relationships, not from consumption.

13. Religion restricted to Personal Beliefs
Meaning of “religion” changed.
Christianity encompassed all
dimensions of life.
Teaching of Christianity in public
sphere were replaced by Social
Science.
Christianity was restricted to a set
of personal beliefs.
World
Public Sphere
RELIGION
Private
Personal
Sphere

14. Religion restricted to Personal Beliefs
Meaning of “religion” changed.
Christianity encompassed all
dimensions of life.
Teaching of Christianity in public
sphere were replaced by Social
Science.
Christianity was restricted to a set
of personal beliefs.
World
Public Sphere
RELIGION
Private
Personal
Sphere

15. Central Epistemological Conflict
• Western theories of knowledge exclude religion, and build on science
• But this excludes life purpose and personal experiences from
knowledge.
• Islamic theories of knowledge give central place to meaning of life,
character, society.
• Social Science is in direct conflict with Islamic theories of social
sphere.

16. What is the
ROOT strategy
for RAPID
change?

17. Change the
Theory of
Knowledge!

18. Europeans changed
the meaning of “KNOWLEDGE
Logical Positivism:
Science is the only valid source of knowledge
Islam:
Gives central importance to the heart and
spirituality, as source of knowledge about
God and the purpose of our creation.

19. More Precisely
Logical Positivism says that Knowledge is ONLY
of External Reality. Science!
Islamic Epistemology: Our primary source of
knowledge is our life-experience (INTERNAL,
non-scientific)
Give students experiences which create
INTERNAL changes. Spiritual Development,
Growth, and Maturity. Deeper understanding
of LIFE!

20. Islam teaches us how to
develop our maximum potential
as human beings.
We created man in the best of forms, and reduced him to
the lowest of the low.
What does this mean?
Man has potential to rise above the angels, and
also the potential to be the worst among the
beasts.

21. Islam teaches us how to
develop our maximum potential
as human beings.
We created man in the best of forms, and reduced him to
the lowest of the low.
What does this mean?
Man has potential to rise above the angels, and
also the potential to be the worst among the
beasts.

22. Supreme responsibility
of teachers:
If you save a life, it is as if you have saved all
of humanity.
How can we make our students –
everyone of them – REALIZE the potential
for excellence with which they have all
been created?

23. Teach only USEFUL
knowledge!
Our Prophet SAW made dua for useful
knowledge
‫ا‬ً‫ع‬ِ‫ف‬‫َا‬‫ن‬ ‫ا‬ً‫م‬ْ‫ل‬ِ‫ع‬ َ‫ك‬ُ‫ل‬َ‫أ‬ْ‫س‬َ‫أ‬ ‫ي‬ِ‫ن‬ِ‫إ‬ َّ‫م‬ُ‫ه‬َّ‫الل‬
And he sought Protection of Allah from
USELESS knowledge
ْ‫ن‬َ‫ي‬ َ‫ال‬ ٍ‫م‬ْ‫ل‬ِ‫ع‬ ْ‫ن‬ِ‫م‬ َ‫ك‬ِ‫ب‬ ُ‫ذ‬‫و‬ُ‫ع‬َ‫أ‬ ‫ي‬ِ‫ن‬ِ‫إ‬ َّ‫م‬ُ‫ه‬َّ‫الل‬
ُ‫ع‬َ‫ف‬

24. We teach ONLY
useless knowledge!
• This is PROHIBITED by Islamic teachings
• This is the result of dramatic shift in Western epistemology,
which took place in early 20th Century
• This new TOXIC theory of knowledge – logical positivism –
shaped the education currently being provided in Western
universities.
• We are BLINDLY imitating the West, and we are POISONING
the minds of our students with USELESS knowledge.
• We can change things rapidly and dramatically, by teaching
USEFUL knowledge.

25. Knowledge is life-experience

26. How can our students experience learning?

27. Modern Social Sciences
are built on Western
Values. We need to
rebuild them on Islamic
foundations

28. Modern Universities teach
technical skills, but do not
provide guidance about
life.
For my personal experiences,
see:
Lessons MIT did not Teach Me
http://bit.ly/mit4az1

29. Economics: Study of
Scarcity? NO
See lecture on scarcity in my Islamic Economics
course:
http://bit.ly/AZie2019
Scarcity arises because economists do not
differentiate between needs and wants.
There is no scarcity to fulfill basic needs of
everyone on the planet
“There is enough for everyone's need, but not
enough for everyone's greed”

30. They do not urge the feeding of the poor
“Hunger, as the primary economic
problem”
https://ssrn.com/abstract=2571779
The first fundamental problem of
economics is to ensure that the basic
needs of all are met – NOT scarcity.

31. How to create experiential learning:
Give students real-life projects, individual and collective
1. Change the life of one person in your neighborhood.
2. Collective Project: Visit a nearby Katchi Abadi, study their
lives, and make ONE small change to improve their lives.

32. How to build character?
Multiple Pathways
• Be a model?? Peer – Mureed method
• Fellow Travellers model: Tableegh.
• Let us learn together.
• Study examples of great character in our lives (immediate
experience)
• Ask students to describe people they admire and their
characteristics
• Ask students to reflect on their own lives, and pick out things
which they did, which they think will have weight on day of
judgement.

33. Problems of
Camaraderie
Students expect
good grades, and
other favors, from
“friendly” teachers.
This requires re-
wiring our minds
and theirs.

34. The Ghazali Project: Transforming
Education to Transform Islamic
Societies
“Central Ideas of the Ghazali
Project”
http://bit.ly/Ghazali1

35. More Discussion
and Details:
• Lecture at Islamia University
of Bhawalpur, on Tuesday, Sep
7th, 2022 by Dr. Asad Zaman
• http://bit.ly/AZuRSS

36. Links to Related Materials
This talk, as blog post:
Improving Our Education Systems
Part 2: http://bit.ly/AZbIES2
Previous Part:
Improving Our Education Systems
Part 1: http://bit.ly/AZbIES2
Urdu Video complete:
http://bit.ly/AZuIES