ABSTRACT
This chapter is about Islamic schools in Kano, Nasarawa and Lagos states in Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country. Nigeria is strong, vibrant, and much more diverse than either Morocco or Yemen, religiously, culturally, and linguistically. Access to “Islamiya schools,” as they are called in Nigeria and thus the data that inform this chapter, were obtained through my association with a U.S. Agency for International Development funded project, which provides assistance to educational institutions, including Islamic schools, that serve children at the primary school level. The term Islamiya is the arabic equivalent of the adjective “Islamic” in English. This project, called LEAP (Literacy Enhancement Assistance Project), has provided me with the opportunity to visit, observe classes, and interview teachers and students in several Islamiya schools in Kano, Nasarawa, and Lagos states.
