The Advent, Evolution and Impact of Islamic Schools in Anglophone Cameroon: A Historical Study

Islamic schools helped a great deal in propagating and spreading Islam in Anglophone Cameroon.Islamic or Quranic Schools were created or open in the early 20 th Century in Anglophone Cameroon, especially in areas where Muslim Communities were found.The various mosques in Anglophone Cameroon were also centers for Islamic education.From the beginning, we had the normal Quranic Schools.Then came the Elementary and Complementary Schools.Anglo-Arabic and Anglo-Islamic Schools first saw the light of day in the late 1970s and early 1980s.Then, by the late 1980s and early 1990s, Islamic Secondary Schools were also created in Anglophone Cameroon.Thanks to the liberty laws of the 1990s, many Islamic Associations were created in the North West and South West Regions of Cameroon.Islamic Schools in Anglophone Cameroon became the main vectors of spreading and propagating Islam (Interview with Alhaji Swaibou Baba Mallam, 3 rd June 2003).The history of Islamic Schools is closely link to the origin and most especially spread and evolution of Islam in Cameroon, in general and in Anglophone Cameroon in particular.Islamic education can refer to efforts by the Muslim Community to educate its own to pass along the heritage of Islamic knowledge, first and foremost through it primary sources, the Quran and the Sunnah or Hadith (the latter being the Saying and teaching of the Prophet).The education of Muslims might take place in mosques, schools or universities, and other organizations established are served by this type of Islamic education.Islamic Institutions are often described by Muslim and others as Islamic schools where educators deliver both "secular" and Islamic education.(A.Kurshid, 1977: pp.2-57).This was and is still the case with Anglo Arabic and Anglo Islamic schools in Anglophone Cameroon.In terms of curriculum, apart from the public school curricula, they add subjects such as instruction in Quranic recitation and memorization, basic Islamic beliefs and practices, and usually Arabic language.As such, Islamic schools have contributed enormously in the education of the Muslim youth in Anglophone Cameroon.