The need for change in the instruction of the method of memorization of the Qur’an is no longer a discussion of if, but of how. Bilal Menon, the creator of Qur’an Companion, a Qur’an memorization app, justifies the need for integrating digital technology with traditional memorization methods by sharing his story of memorization of the Qur’an. By the age of eleven, Menon had memorized the entire Qur’an, but as a teenager, he forgot it completely. As a university student, he began a new journey with the Qur’an, and revived his link with the Qur’an. Although learning in a memorization center is a great approach for accountability, perfecting recitation, etc, there is a need for a more holistic approach for today’s generation of children, to see that the Qur’an is a source of spiritual nourishment, instead of punishment.
1. The transformations in the field of technologies have congregated our daily life routines under a single touch and Muslims are also adopting these new tools with an exponential growth.
2. Extending this notion to Qur’anic studies, Muslims are shifting to electronic or smart devices to learn their religious books. Numerous attempts have been made to digitalize the learning of the Qur’an, as well its memorization.
3. Reports indicate that many people today struggle with their abilities to maintain attention and to retain or memorize information– not because they cannot, rather due to the methods of teaching.
4. This issue is becoming particularly relevant within the most recent generational groups now termed with such titles as Generation Z, the Net Generation, or Digital Natives. Although there are many methods used to ensure the preservation of the Qur’an in the modern age, memorizing the Qur’an is one of the methods to ensure that it remains intact in the hearts of its followers.
5. The motivation to memorize the Qur’an is instilled with a variety of rewards that will be given by God for those who memorize the Quran.
6 It is found through many of the sayings of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH): Whoever reads the Qur’an, learns it and acts in accordance with it, on the Day of Resurrection his parents will be given a crown to wear whose light will be like the light of the sun, and his parents will be given garments which far surpass everything to be found in this world. They will say, “Why have we been given this to wear?” It will be said, “Because your child learned the Qur’an.”
7. Studies in the world of game-based learning as well as Qur’an memorization prove that today’s students learn differently than previous generations.
8. The current traditional methods in Qur’an memorization centers are becoming less effective for younger generations. Mark Prensky, father of game-based learning and author of many books, including “Don’t Bother me Mom, I’m Learning!” states that we can either choose to ignore our eyes, ears, and intuition, and pretend that traditional methods are enough, or we can choose to accept the fact that this shift in learning exists and continue to effectively communicate valuable knowledge and wisdom to the next generation by creatively examining how they learn. Prensky states that the biggest problem in education today is that our instructors from the pre-digital age (digital immigrants) are struggling to teach a population that were born into the digital era and speak the digital language (digital natives).
9. While one could argue that there are a vast number of mobile and web-based apps for memorization of the Qur’an, research has shown that these applications are, “...still limited and focused on the direct use of technology such as storing, listening, searching, etc. without using more useful and creative techniques to help Qur’an memorizers to interact with the Qur’an.”
10. This correlates with my own analysis, detailed later in the thesis. As stated by Prensky, “The cognitive differences of the Digital Natives cry out for new approaches to education with a better ‘fit’.”
11. This research seeks to address this challenging problem in the design and creation of game-based learning tools for memorizers of the Qur’an. This will, in turn, provide multiple opportunities to rethink tools and methodologies for the process of memorizing the Qur’an.