Education Ministry launches Imam Al-Nawawi's 40 Hadith appreciation module

PUTRAJAYA - The Education Ministry (MOE) today launched the ‘Imam Al-Nawawi’s 40 Hadith’ appreciation module aimed at fostering the values of the Prophet Muhammad’s sayings or ‘hadith’ at the school level.

The module will first be implemented at National Religious Secondary Schools (SMKA) and Government Aided Religious Schools (SABK) before being distributed to schools under the Education Ministry next year.

Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek said the module allowed teachers and students to gain an appreciation for the collection of 40 hadith compiled by Imam Al-Nawawi, especially the values contained within them.

"I have no problem with the values in the hadith being brought to schools and at the same time, we have a great commitment to see our Muslim children truly appreciate the 40 hadith.

"One of the hadith is ‘Ad Deen An Nasihah’ which means that religion is advice and this is what we want to try to translate when we ask to appreciate the hadith, whereby our challenge today is to ensure that everyone speaks of good, especially in a time when there is a flood of idols and a drought of role models," she said when speaking at the launch of the module at SMKA Putrajaya here today.

Meanwhile, MOE Islamic Education Division senior deputy director Omar Salleh said the module was developed in line with the recommendations of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim who wanted the government to take the initiative through the MOE and the Department of Islamic Development Malaysia (Jakim) to republish the collection of hadith for distribution in schools nationwide.

He said this was to ensure that the appreciation of the hadith began at the school level, and that it could foster a spirit of love and deepen religious understanding, especially among Muslim students.

"Accordingly, the Ministry of Education has taken an approach by building a module to appreciate Imam Al-Nawawi’s 40 Hadith that can be used as a guide for all schools under the MOE. In addition, we also encourage Islamic Education teachers who are active on TikTok to produce a variety of videos containing the 40 hadith, according to their creativity," he said.

Omar said the module would aid teachers in conducting enrichment activities inside and outside the classroom, and was not limited to just reading the hadith.

This, he said, included activities such as the reading and explanation of the 40 hadith after prayers, creating a hadith info corner, sharing hadith lessons in weekly gatherings, gotong-royong themed on practices from the 40 hadith and cross-cultural practices.

"This method of implementation is indirectly able to foster love among students, while the organisation of cross-cultural activities translated through this module is able to build character and the spirit of unity according to the model of a pluralistic society in Malaysia," he said, adding that the 40 hadith covered all aspects of life, including faith, morals, advice and communication.

He said the module designed and built by MOE involving parties with various expertise took into account an approach that covered all levels of schools including mainstream ones.

Omar said the ministry hoped that through the module, it could instill the fundamentals of religious understanding that strived to elevate human dignity in an effort to create good and intelligent children through activities inside and outside the classroom.

It would also showcase the beauty of Islam in community life by celebrating the diversity of religions and races, in addition to instilling pure values of Islamic teachings that forbid doing harm or damage.

Meanwhile, the carnival held in conjunction with the launch of the module today was filled with activities such as gotong-royong, an exhibition involving 10 schools with each displaying its success, wisdom and skills leading to the appreciation of the 40 hadith, in addition to the sale of academic books. - BERNAMA