Despite discrimination in mainstream Canadian society, local Muslim communities are a significant resource for immigrants. Recruited by friendship and kin networks, some families chose to educate their children in private full-time Muslim schools which provide academic/economic credentials and social support. Through participant observation and semi-structured interviews, this research depicts a Muslim school in Montreal which both reflects Quebec society and nurtures minority ethnic/religious identity. For many parents, Arabic language classes, academic standards, and behavioral norms were as important as the school's religious affiliation. Rejecting the hypothesis that emphasizing religious and cultural identities distanced children from mainstream society, some felt that the psychological and social effects of affirming a child's background were vital to integration and participation in mainstream society. In addition, the school also provided entry into social networks which offered parents an important support system.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:LACETR/oai:collectionscanada.gc.ca:QMM.27945 |
| Date | January 1997 |
| Creators | Kelly, Patricia, 1968- |
| Contributors | Turgay, A. U. (advisor) |
| Publisher | McGill University |
| Source Sets | Library and Archives Canada ETDs Repository / Centre d'archives des thèses électroniques de Bibliothèque et Archives Canada |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Coverage | Master of Arts (Institute of Islamic Studies.) |
| Rights | All items in eScholarship@McGill are protected by copyright with all rights reserved unless otherwise indicated. |
| Relation | alephsysno: 001618746, proquestno: MQ37210, Theses scanned by UMI/ProQuest. |
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