Cultural reproduction, segmented assimilation and the religious schooling experiences of immigrants at an Islamic academy: Learning by choice

Introduction. A case study research design was employed to examine various dynamics of the cultural reproduction, segmented assimilation and religious schooling experiences of immigrant Muslim 1 parents and students at an Islamic day school. Three core research questions guided this examination.;What is the functionality of Islamic schooling as a vehicle of cultural reproduction? How do religiosity and the presentation of Islamic rituals serve students and families as opportunities for affirmation?;What experiences carry the immigrant's identity?;Site description. The research site was the Nur Islamic Academy2 a Pre-School-12th grade licensed private Islamic day school located in a north-eastern city in the United States. The student body composition was 55% immigrant and 45% African-American Muslims. The school was located in an ethnic settlement encapsulated in a neighborhood that was experiencing the impacts of capital flight, uneven development and urban decay.;Research design. A Case Study research design was used. It included principal, staff and parent interviews, an 8th grade immigrant student focus group, observations, archival investigations an a attitudinal parental survey on school choice.;Data analysis. The transcribed audio-taped interviews were analyzed using the direct responses to the guided interview questions. These statements were classified into themes by content. Observations, archival and organizational reviews served as triangulation tools. The population targeted in this study does not respond well to survey data collection. Therefore, the survey results were inconclusive. Outliers were identified and noted. The interpretation, conclusions and discussions were supported with a literature synthesis. All participants were anonymous.;Findings. The findings of this study suggest that the Muslim expatriates in this urban immigrant settlement consciously used Islamic schooling as an institutional mode of intergenerational cultural preservation and reproduction. They elected to carry and hold their home cultures and Arabian heritage as they nestled into this urban landscape.;Conclusions. Nur Islamic Academy created an ethos that affirmed the parents, students and community member's Islamic belief system. Immigrant Muslim student participants related that Islamic schooling was a viable vehicle for their Islamic identity formation and retention, as well as the preservation of their respective home cultures. They also expressed that they choose Islamic schooling as a way to opt-out of the downward mobility that plagued their home neighborhood schools and lived communities. Students were discreetly exposed to selected mainstream cultural experiences. Opportunities for Interfaith exploration were an integral component of the instructional programming. Staff members and parents voiced that they have forgone full mainstream assimilation. Their preference was to actively participate in selective acculturation and incorporation processes as a segmented component of their day to day lives.;This study attempts to expand the scope of literature in the areas of: cultural reproduction, cultural assimilation, segmented assimilation, Western Islamic schooling models, as well as, Muslim and ethnic identity formation and maintenance.;1. Muslim: The name for members of the Islamic Faith, which means submission to God. 2. The Nur Islamic Academy and all other individual, organizational and institutional names are pseudonyms to maintain their anonymities.