Religious schools must explore new knowledge, says Anwar

Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has called on Malaysia's traditional Islamic schools, known as 'pondok,' 'madrasah,' and 'maahad,' to integrate modern knowledge, including computer science and artificial intelligence, into their curricula. Speaking at a gathering of religious schools in Perak, Anwar stressed that these institutions must demonstrate their capacity to cultivate not only expertise in Islamic scholarship, Sharia law, and Arabic but also proficiency in emerging technologies.

“

Prove that these pondok and madrasah or maahad schools can produce students' intelligence, resilience, and skills in specific disciplines, namely Sharia, Arabic, and so on; but also new knowledge.

Anwar recalled past educational models that eventually faltered due to a failure to adapt to rapid changes and the adoption of new knowledge. He expressed pride in the current readiness of 'pondok' leaders and teachers to embrace new disciplines alongside their traditional Islamic teachings. The Prime Minister highlighted the efforts of the Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC) and a Prime Minister's Department unit in improving religious schools nationwide.

“

Pondok used to play a role but eventually lost out because the changes were so rapid and we couldn't grasp mastery of other knowledge.

He pledged government commitment to elevating the standing of these religious schools, provided the nation's health and economy remain stable. Anwar reaffirmed the continuation of the digital transformation initiative for Islamic educational institutions launched in March. He noted that several schools are already exploring new technologies, citing an example where he personally approved an additional RM100,000 for one school, bringing his total allocation to RM300,000, and mentioned that Perak's 'pondok' schools received an extra RM15 million last year.

“

That's why I see and am proud. Alhamdulillah, the ustazs and pondok leaders, your teachers, besides strengthening Islamic traditions and old books, are still willing to break through, explore new disciplines like computers and AI.