General information

Background on the madrasah system

Singapore’s six full-time madrasahs play an important role in producing religious scholars and religious teachers for the Muslim community. To achieve this, the Muslim community believes that it is essential for education to begin at a young age, during the compulsory school-age years.

Madrasah curriculum

The curricula in the full-time madrasahs cover both secular and religious subjects. At the primary level, madrasahs are required to meet minimum PSLE performance benchmarks set by the Ministry of Education (MOE). Overall, madrasah curricula are designed to fulfil their main goal of producing religious scholars and religious teachers for the Muslim community. Because of this, madrasah students have longer curriculum hours as compared to national schools.

An education centred on Ad-deen: Preparing for socio-religious careers in a knowledge-based economy

Each of the six madrasahs has its own unique history, identity, vision and focus. However, they all share a common philosophy: An education rooted in the Islamic tradition and values (Ad-deen) with a forward-looking and progressive modern outlook in preparation for the knowledge-based economy of today. While our full-time madrasahs remain centred on Ad-deen, they continue to adapt and evolve with the changes in the national education landscape that prepare our children to thrive in a fast-moving economy. Evidently, our madrasahs today have also progressed in the delivery of Singapore’s national curriculum in the academic subjects such as English, Mathematics, Science and Mother Tongue from primary to the pre-university level. The Islamic studies curriculum has also evolved with the times, taking into consideration the context of Singapore’s socio-cultural realities

For more information on madrasah education, you may refer to the booklet on Madrasah Education [PDF, 7 MB].