Table of Contents

Preface 

Chapter One: Education Among the Shia Community in Lebanon Until the End of the Ottoman Era

1. Scientific Shiite Seminaries 
2.  Main Shiite Seminaries in Lebanon
3. Examples of Programs, Lessons, and Teaching Methods in Shiite Seminaries 
4. Shiite Elementary Schools: Kuttab
5. Shiite Education Under the Ottoman Public Education System 
   a) Elementary, Intermediate, and Secondary Education 
   b) Religious Missionary Schools 
   c) Schools with an Islamic Character

Chapter Two: Shiite Education During the French Mandate Era

1. The Diminishing Influence of Shiite Seminaries
2. From Disorder to Organization
3. Modern Shiite Schools: Keeping Pace with Contemporary Education 
   a) Al-Jaafari School in Tyre 
   b) Al-Amaliyyah Schools: From Beirut to Throughout Lebanon 
   c) Al-Huda Schools for Habib al-Ibrahim 
   d) Official Grants for Schools: A Share for the Shia
4. Shiite Illiteracy: A Noticeable Decline

Chapter Three: Shiite Education from Independence to the Civil War

1. Official Schools
2. Private Schools: Shiite Advancement and Continuity 
   a) Support from Expatriates 
   b) Intersection with Formal Education
3. Educational Quality and Curriculum Adjustments
4. Shiite Seminaries: Awakening Amidst Political Backgrounds

Chapter Four: Shiite Education During Shadow of the Civil War

1. Partisan Schools 
   a) Hezbollah 
   b) Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah 
   c) Amal Movement
2. Shiite Seminaries During the War 
   a) Prosperity and Iranian Funding 
   b) Women's Shiite Seminaries

Chapter Five: Shiite Education After the Civil War

1. Institutions of the Amal Movement After the War
2. Institutions of Hezbollah After the War 
   a) Islamic Education and Teaching Institutions
   • Affiliated Schools and Institutions
   • Teacher and Student Preparation: Vision and Direction 

b) Islamic Education Society

1. Affiliated Schools and Institutions
2. Religious Vision Through Education
3. Values of Subordination and Adherence in Hezbollah’s Educational Project
4. A Comparison Between the Official Curriculum and the Curricula of Hezbollah and the Amal Movement
5. Loyalty Shift: From Saluting the Nation to Saluting the Commander 
6. Shiite Seminaries After the War 
   a) Subordination and Independence 
   b) Women's Shiite Seminaries
7. Higher Education: Delayed Access

Summary 

Sources and References 

There is a well-known quote by Fouad Afram al-Bustani, Lebanese writer, historian, and one of the founders of the Lebanese University, in which he states that the history of the education system in Lebanon reflects the history of Lebanon itself. This research, by tracing and analyzing the history and current state of education and the Lebanese Shia community, finds resonance with its findings and al-Bustani’s analysis. As such, the examination of Shiite education in Lebanon undertaken in this research necessitates tracing the historical context that starts in the era of the Ottoman Empire and its education policies, primarily its focus on religious education. It also involves exploring its diverse interactions with religious groups both through and beyond the Ottoman system of administration, particularly how it approached the education of Shia communities and the establishment of their schools. This historical journey then encompasses the establishment of Greater Lebanon in 1920, the French Mandate era, and the expansion of the official education system under Lebanon’s constitution that established a framework of educational freedom that recognized the rights of religious sects to establish their respective schools. After Lebanon was granted independence, the geographical inclusion of Shiite populations in Lebanon and the organization of education unfolded with sequential events that shaped the education landscape. This can be seen in the impact of social changes and conflict factors on the population and education, especially during the period of the civil war from 1975 to 1990 and its aftermath. This research culminates in the present day, marked by the emergence of educational networks managed by associations and institutions affiliated with the Shia duo, the Amal Movement and Hezbollah.

Methodologically, the study of education, its origin, and its outcomes requires the consideration of social changes and the management of education through the Lebanese state's public policy. It involves understanding the contribution of religion in the public domain and the reciprocal relationships between education and each of the political, social, and economic systems, in each chronological period. Therefore, in this research, education has been described and analyzed as a comprehensive process that pervades social institutions (schools, institutes, and places of worship) intentionally and systematically through educational policies, curricula, and programs. The educational system, in its broader sense, encompasses all forms of upbringing and their social means to influence behavior, instill values, and shape attitudes, whether organized through teaching within the school and its activities and classrooms within its confined walls, or unconfined to specific places and times. In terms of sources, this research has relied on both relevant existing literature and primary sources such as written archival and historical documents, as well as audio materials such as recorded speeches from public events and popular songs.

The historical context and tracing of education among the Shia community in Lebanon provided in this research allows for the extraction of a set of features that accompanied and characterized successive historical epochs. The sources relied upon included the existing documentation concerning Shia seminaries and scholarly institutions, focusing on their significance and geographic concentration in areas of Shia prevalence in Lebanon—namely, the South, Beqaa, and Mount Lebanon. Additionally, these sources present the models of programs, lessons, and prevailing teaching methodologies in Shia religious schools, including elementary schools, that predominantly shaped the educational landscape, especially in Shia villages and towns.