Islamic schools at a crossroads
THE AUSTRALIAN FEBRUARY 25, 2016 12:00AM
Last year The Australian reported that almost 30,000 students were attending Australia's 39 Islamic schools, an 82 per cent enrolment increase across five years. In contrast, student numbers in all Australian schools grew 6 per cent in the same period, to 3.7 million.
As a small but growing arm of the nation's education system, Islamic schools receive their fair share of taxpayers' support — at last count $300 million a year in recurrent funding and tens of millions more in capital funding.
After five years of investigative reporting by Leo Shanahan for The Australian, Education Minister Simon Birmingham has cut commonwealth funding to the nation's largest Islamic school after a Deloitte audit report revealed financial mismanagement by the Australian Federation of Islamic Councils. Malek Fahd Islamic School at Greenacre in Sydney's southwest, with 2400 students, could close in April. After serious problems were uncovered at schools in Brisbane, Canberra, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth, the minister had no choice but to put them on notice that their funding also would be cut if they didn't show cause why they should remain open.
As with Christian, Jewish and other non-government schools that are well run and accountable, Muslim leaders and communities need to put their educational house in order or they are likely to lose their schools, which receive 80 per cent to 90 per cent of their funding from the public purse because most students are from disadvantaged and non-English speaking backgrounds. While there is no Muslim equivalent of the Catholic education system, for example, the AFIC has caused the Islamic schools' problems and is not fit for a responsible oversight role.
The fact hundreds of Malek Fahd parents, students and alumni stood up to their leaders last week, forcing the former board to stand down, was a good sign. The community understands what its leaders fail to grasp — that schools must be transparent and professional in handling taxpayers' money. Other Muslim communities also must be proactive if their schools are to survive.
