Chapter 8
THE PERIOD OF CONCENTRATED REFORM EFFORTS
In this
chapter the various events which affected Zaytuna in1930 and 1931 are examined.
This was a period of extensive requests and demonstrations for reform at
Zaytuna. This was also a period in which Zaytuna students, newspapers, Tunisian
and French officials, and Zaytuna professors were seeking reform. During this
time these reform requests resulted in the organization of another reform
commission in 1930. However this was not a period in which reform at Zaytuna
was realized. The traditional attitudes about women and education were being
attacked during this period by at-Tahir al-Haddad, a former Zaytuna student who
wrote a book on women and Islam entitled Imra'tuna fi ash-shrjaah wal Mujtamaa.
In addition to the reform efforts affecting the educational approach of
Zaytuna, there was also a concentrated effort to improve the dilapidated
conditions in the madrasas which by 1930 had become the breeding places for
various diseases including tuberculosis (La Voix Du Tunisien, Materi, M., March
25, 1931).
Movement to Bring Reform to Zaytuna
Although there were various groups seeking reform for Zaytuna in the
early 1930's, the most active group was the Zaytuna students who had to suffer
educationally and monetarily because of the traditional approach at Zaytuna.
These efforts of the Zaytuna students were often hindered
by two insurmountable obstacles: the professors and the conservative factions
of Tunisia (Nomane, “A La Grande Mosquee, February 2, 1930).
Desire for reform as expressed by a Zaytuna student
In an
effort to elicit reform at Zaytuna, Muhammad Salih al-Mehidi, a student of
Zaytuna, wrote an article entitled; "laliha islah at-taailm." In this
article, al-Mehidi mentioned the need for the reformation of various aspects of
Zaytuna's educational procedures.
Among
al-Mehidi's reform requests are the following: reform of the nizara; reform of
recruitment procedures for professors; reform of Zaytuna's lack of allowance
for student specialization (this reform was made by the Decree of March 1933);
reform of Zaytuna's retirement policies; reform of disciplinary procedures
dealing with absent professors; reform of Zaytuna's entrance requirements;
reform of testing procedures; and reform of the disciplinary actions concerning
Zaytuna students.
From
what al-Mehidi states, one can obtain an insight into some of the problems
facing Zaytuna students in the 1930's and some of the factors which motivated
Zaytuna students to seek reform. From his request it appears that the nizlra
was ineffective in meeting the demands of the Zaytuna students that many
professors were being absent from their lectures, were poor in quality, and
were too old to be good teachers. The students were unable to specialize, were
unfairly disciplined and were often placed in lecture situations where there was
a lack of homogeneity among the students (Revue Des Etudes Islamiques, 1930,
pp. 501-15). It was reform requests like al-Mehidi's which aided in bringing a
reform commission of 1930 into existence.
Reform at Zaytuna and Al-Azhar
At the
same time that Zaytuna was working toward reform, Al-Azhar in Cairo was also
making improvements. However the statement that Zaytuna was ahead of Al-Azhar
in the process of reform made by Shaykh Abduh in the early 1900's was no longer
true. By 1930 Al-Azhar was ahead of Zaytuna in the introduction of modern
subjects into its curriculum.
In
analyzing the reasons for Al-Azhar's reforms and the lack of reform at
Zaytuna—at least any major reforms which brought a greater number of modern
science courses to the Zaytuna curriculum—Nomane stated that this was mainly
due to the circumstances in the two countries. In Egypt the government schools
were introducing modern subjects in addition to Arabic. This action forced
Al-Azhar to introduce these subjects in order to maintain its existence. In
Tunisia, with the exception of Sadiqiyyah and a few other schools, Arabic
wasn't taught in the government schools. Thus Zaytuna, being the base for Arabic
and Islamic studies, didn't have as much pressure as did Al-Azhar to introduce
modern science courses in order to maintain its existence (Nomane, “A La Grande Mosquee, February 2, 1930).
Reform Commission of 1930
As a
result of the students' demands for reform, a new commission was appointed on
March 27, 1930. This commission, like former commissions, was charged with
elaborating a general reform for the Grand Mosque (Revue Des Etudes Islamiques,
1932, p. 229).
The
reform commission of 1930 was presided over by Khelil bou Hadjeb. The
commission was composed of the following prominent Tunisiens: the Prime
Minister; the Shaykhs al-Islam, Ahmed Bairam; the Shaykh Bash-Mufti Malikite,
Salah al Maliki; the Shaykh Mohamed Aziz Djait, Mufti and professor; the Shaykh
Belhaser Najar, Mufti and professor; the General Bel Khodja, qadi (judge) of
Bizerte; the General Ali ben Mustapha, honorary consellor of justice; Chenik,
vice-president of the indigenous section of the Grand Council; Omar Baccouche,
member of the Grand Council; Ali Salkat, the Director of Habus; Sfar, chef adjoint
de la section d'Etat; Shaykh Mohamed Bel Cadhi, delegate of the government at
Zaytuna; Shaykh Taleb Siala, delegate of the government at Zaytuna; Shaykh
Othman bel Khodja, professor of Zaytuna; Mohamed Gacem, Mohamed Ladjimi, and
Mokdad al Overtani, Secretaries (La Depeche Tunisienne, “La Djemaa Zitouna, 1930).
From this list it would appear that any major educational reforms at Zaytuna were
doomed from the beginning, for again the reform commission was composed of
non-educationalists.
The
first meeting of the commission was on April 5, 1930. This meeting took place
in the Par al-Bey, the government building. In this first meeting, the Prime
Minister, the Shaykh al-Islam, and the Director General of the Interior gave
the opening addresses.
The Prime Minister pointed out that the
commission n'a pour objet que to perfectionnement des methodes de
l'enseignement applique a 1' Universite de la Zeitouna [Zaytuna] et de ses
annexes. Thus the objective of the commission was to
reform the methods used at Zaytuna. The Prime Minister further stated, Votre commission aura pour tache de rechercher
les moyens de nature a permettre aux etudiants d' acquerir dans le plus court
delai possible les connaissances qui leur sont neccessaries. According to this statement, the commission should strive to shorten
the study time spent at Zaytuna to the shortest possible period. This expressed
the same idea that at-Tahir Ibn Ashur wrote in his book a laisa as-subh
bi-qarlb? In this book Ibn Ashur mentioned that the time spent in school
shouldn't be the same for the modern student as it was for the ancient student
because the modern student had less time to spend in studying before he needed
a job (Ibn Ashur, 1967, p. 115). The Shaykh al-Islam asked that the
commission consider the following three reforms: (1) "to exonerate from
military service all persons provided with a certificate establishing that he
is a student at the Grand Mosque." This same desire was mentioned by, but
not granted to, the Zaytuna strikers in 1910; (2) to confer the administration of
the madrasas to the nizara; and (3) to reattach the kuttabs to the nizara.
Thierry,
Director General of the Interior, mentioned the part played by the Protectorate
government in relation to Zaytuna. He stated that the government had given
Zaytuna the needed financial assistance to continue its existence. Furthermore
he assured the commission that the government would do what it could to support
reform at Zaytuna. Thierry also stated that after the commission had completed
its reform proposals, they, the proposals, were to be submitted to the
government for further approval. The government would then submit these
approved reforms to the Bey who would issue them as a decree (La Depeche Tunisienne,
“La Djemaa Zitouna, 1930).
Newspaper articles on the reform commission and reform at Zaytuna
Before
and after the creation of the reform commission, there were various articles
written seeking reform at Zaytuna and/or commenting on the slowness of the
reform commission to bring about needed reform. In commenting on the defects of
the commission, La Voix Tunisien stated:
. . . in spite of the high functions of the
members who were made part of this commission, in spite of the
valor and erudition and . . . the ample learning of certain among
them, there are no technicians. . . . (La Voix Du Tunisien, “A La Grande
Mosque, 1930).
One of
the results of the lack of compliance to this request was that when the
reforms, which resulted from the efforts of this committee, were issued in 1932
and 1933 they were weak in their reformation of the teaching methods and the
curriculum at Zaytuna.
After
the reform commission had been working for about a year without any evidence of
their work, various newspapers attacked this lack of action. Concerning this
commission, La Voix Du Tunisien stated in a 1931 article:
The commission of studies [which had as its
purpose the study of ways to reform the education at Zaytuna] named
by the government since more than a year and toward which the hopes of the students
converged, does not give a sign of life. Neither the protestations of all
nature, nor the innumerable letters that it has received, it has not been able
to shake its torpor, at the grand deception of the interested who see it to be
lost, in the expectation of the precious years of their life (Las Voix Du
Tunisien, “Les Reformes de la Grande Mosquee, 1931).
There
were also other numerous newspaper articles which asked for reform at Zaytuna
and of the nizara. On these reform desires, Taieb Jemail wrote the following in
La Voix Du Tunisien:
In spite of certain differences of view on the
questions of detail, all the plans of reorganization that had been proposed are
founded on the modernization of the methods of education, the institution of
three cycles and the introduction of physical and natural sciences in the
program. . . (La Voix Du Tunisien, “La Grande Mosquee, 1931).
In addition to these points, most of the
reformists wanted a year of specialization in a specific area of study at
Zaytuna (La Voix Du Tunisien, “La Grande Mosquee, 1931).
In the
August 19, 1931 edition of La Voix Du Tunisien an article was printed relating
to the conservatism of the Prime Minister and the Shaykh al-Islam. In this
article it blamed these two officials for the conservatism at Zaytuna. It
further stated; “ills [the Prime Minister and the Shaykh al-lslam] sont ennemis
de tout progress” (La Voix Du Tunisien, “Le Premier Ministre . . . ., 1931).
Now these officials were added to the list of those responsible for the lack of
reform at Zaytuna. This newspaper attack was one of the factors which caused
the dismissal of these two officials in 1932.
Further student demonstrations for reform at Zaytuna
Because
the reform commission was slow in acting, the students demonstrated for reform
in October 1931. Some days before this demonstration the students had sent a
petition with about 830 signatures to the
reform commission demanding that the government make haste in introducing
reform at Zaytuna. At this time the students emphasized that these demands had
been required, but not met, twenty years before. This point emphasized that the
students felt that the Decree of 1912 hadn't yet fully answered the demands of
the 1910 strike. However the petition the students sent to the commission
wasn't delivered to the government. This action brought about the
demonstration.
As a
result of this demonstration in October 1931, the government officials asked
that a delegation be appointed to represent the students. However this plan
didn't work as it had done in 1910, for the students wanted to be dealt with as
a group. They, as a group, sought for an increased number of modern science
courses and a reform of the nizara (Nomane, Mohammed, “un Tour a la Grande
Mosquee, 1931).
at-Tahir al-Haddad and Muslim women
Another
force for reform in Tunisia was the writings of at-Tahir al-Haddad. Around 1930
at-Tahir al-Haddad wrote a book entitled Imra'tuna fl ash-shriaah wal majtamaa
on the emancipation of women. Inthis book al-Haddad strived to illustrate that
the emancipation of women was supported by Islamic scripture and writings.I6
Because of the nature of this book, it was refuted by the Zaytuna people and al-Haddad
was stripped of "his degree and right to teach at Zaytuna (Brown, 1962,
pp. 134-35)." In approving a book by Shaykh Ben Mrad which
attempted to refute al-Haddad's book, the Zaytuna officials made the following
statement:
The
book [la Voie de Deuil Jete sur la "Femme" d'al-Haddad] of Shaykh Ben Mard published with the encouragement
and the official authorization of the Council of Direction of the University az-Zaytuna, constitutes a decisive refutation of
the thesis of the book of al-Haddad, judged then excessively heterodox
(Borrmans, 1968, p. 107).
The
action taken by the Zaytuna administrators to suppress the book of
al-Haddad represented the power that this group still held and the way
it was able to suppress modern ideas. This same council which suppressed
the modern ideas of al-Haddad was on the commission for reforming
Zaytuna. With this apparently non-modernizing council on the commission
for reform of Zaytuna, it would appear that few, if any, of the
really revolutionary, but needed, modernizing reforms would be introduced
at Zaytuna as a result of this commission's efforts. Such things
as an extensive introduction of modern science subjects would have to
wait for a less conservative commission before they could be made a
part of the curriculum at Zaytuna.
General Educational Atmosphere At Zaytuna
Various
articles in newspapers, journals, and book explained the educational procedures
at Zaytuna during the early 1930's. Many of these articles emphasized the lack
of reform at Zaytuna and the need to improve the preparation that these
students had at the quranic schools (kuttabs) before they came to Zaytuna. One
result of these articles was the establishment of a placement examination for
students entering Zaytuna. By means of this test, quranic school graduates
could classified according to the degree of instruction they had received and better
placed in lectures at Zaytuna (La Voix Du Tunisien, “A La Grande Mosquee IV,
1930). This was an improvement of the old method in which students had no
guidance, but it didn't fully eliminate poorly prepared students who hindered
the education of others.
On
March 7, 1931 there was a report in La Voix Du Tunisien describing a visit to
the Great Mosque of Tunis. In discussing the educational approach there, the
article stated that the lessons were given in the room of prayer, that there
were up to 15 professors giving their lessons at the same time, that there were
about 270 lessons given at the mosque each day, that the professors stationed
themselves around the columns, and that the students sat in a semi-circle
around the professors with their legs crossed (La Voix Du Tunisien, “Une Visit
A La Grande Mosquee,” March 7, 1931). From this description of the conduct of
the lectures in 1931, it appears that there had been little or no improvement
of the teaching procedures at Zaytuna since the 8th century.
In 1931
the lessons consisted of an explanatory summary of the text followed by a classical commentary. One
practical exercise consisted of a lecture about the text given by one of the
students. In this lecture the student presented an application of the stated
and explained rules.
The
students did not take notes during the lectures, but they and their professors
read word for word from the textbook. During these lectures the students could
interrupt to ask questions if they maintained respect for the professor (La
Voix Du Tunisien, “Une Visit A La Grande Mosquee, March 7, 1931). It seems that
the rigld stipulations of the Decree of 1912 concerning asking questions were
not followed in the 1930's.
From
other newspaper articles on Zaytuna during the early 1930's, it can be learned
that there were no blackboards, no maps, and no basic teaching equipment to
assist the professors with the presentation of their lectures. The lessons were
given orally and it usually required little use of the student's intellectual
abilities. The only time that the students were aroused mentally was when they
were asked to make a grammatical analysis. However usually only the bright
students made this analysis.
Many
teachers had zeal and devotion for their teaching job, according to Taieb
Jemail in an article on Zaytuna in La Voix Du Tunisien, but even the better
teachers were hampered by the "lack of organization and the insufficiency
of the programs."
The
students sometimes mocked the teaching methods used. Often in "revenge"
for the emphasis on memory at Zaytuna, the students would memorize a multitude
of precepts and summaries in verse (La Voix Du Tunisien, “La Grande Mosquee,
1931).
In a
discussion with at-Tahir Ibn Ashur on reforming the education at Zaytuna and
the inclusion of modern sciences, Shaykh Ibn Ashur, who at that time was
Bash-Mufti Malikite and a member of the reform commission, stated that modern
science was compatible with Islam. He further noted that, to some extent,
Zaytuna students had been exposed to modern science by the establishment of
Khalduniyyah and the addition of various courses like history, arithmetic,
algebra, and the like to the curriculum of Zaytuna by the decrees of 1875 and
1912 (M. Z. “A la Mosquee de l’Olivier,” September 3, 1931). Yet, even though
at-Tahir Ibn Ashur, a longtime advocate for reform and modernization at
Zaytuna, was on the commission for reform, this commission was only successful
in making minor changes of the curriculum at Zaytuna. As will be pointed out in
the next chapter, the reform which was finally brought about in 1933 was still
weak in modern science and other needed reforms, many reforms which at-Tahir
Ibn Ashur had advocated himself.
In 1930
the number of Muslim students in French directed secondary schools was around
919 (Rapports, 1932, p. 56), while there was approximately 3,000 students at
Zaytuna. This large difference demonstrates that Zaytuna was still attracting
the greater number of Muslim students, but it doesn't illustrate which group of
students were attending the two types of educational systems. Although Zaytuna
had a greater number of students, the French directed schools had a greater
percentage of students who were from the wealthier and higher social classes of
Tunisia. The wealthy classes and members of the Ulama were sending their
children to the French directed schools and to Sadiqiyyah so that they would be
better prepared for further education at European schools and for government
jobs in Tunisia. Zaytuna was losing its role as a stepping stone to a higher
socio-economic level. For a long time this role had attracted less wealthy
students to study at Zaytuna; but by the early 1930's Zaytuna had decreased as a
contributor to social mobility.
Summary
Although
the period covered in this chapter was short in comparison to the other periods
which have been examined in this dissertation, it was a very significant time.
It was a time in which both students and newspapers took an active part in
trying to bring reform to Zaytuna.
As a
result of student demonstrations for reform, a reform commission was organized
in 1930. This commission introduced no reforms during the period covered in
this chapter. This slow action by the commission resulted in newspaper attacks
and even a student demonstration in 1931. All these actions worked to encourage
the commission to bring about rapid and needed reforms to Zaytuna, but still it
was slow in issuing any reform decrees.
In the
early years of 1930, the still existing powerful and conservative nature of the
Zaytuna officials was demonstrated when al-Haddad was stripped of his Zaytuna degree
for his controversial book on the emancipation of women. This action not only
demonstrated the conservative nature of the Zaytuna officials, but since most,
if not all, of these officials were members of the reform commission, it manifested
the conservative nature of that commission also. It was this conservative
atmosphere on the reform commission which hindered the rapid improvement of
Zaytuna's archaic educational programs.
One of
the most notable reform efforts of this period was the concentrated effort made
by the newspapers to influence reform at Zaytuna. The effectiveness of these
efforts is demonstrated by the fact that when reform did come to Zaytuna in
1933, the reform decree restricted both the Zaytuna students and teachers from
associating or collaborating with the newspapers.
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