Welcome to ‘Meet the Teacher’ where our lovely staff at the Lady Nafisa school introduce themselves and share their experiences on what it’s like being an educator at an independent girls school.
This time round we are meeting Ust Tahira who is Head of Islamic Studies and Quran…
So let’s get started and meet the teacher!
Tell us a little bit about yourself, what you teach and how long you have been a teacher?
Assalamu alaikum. My name is Ustadah Tahira Hadi. I teach Islamic Studies and Qur’an and dabble in a bit of PE too! I have been teaching at LNS since September 2011
When and why did you decide you wanted to become a teacher?
Well, I didn’t really…I was dragged into it! I was on maternity leave when Ustadah Fouzia insisted that I do some part time teaching of Islamic Studies and Qur’an at LNS. To be honest I was very reluctant and nervous as teaching young teenagers was completely out of my comfort zone. However, I had been blessed with travelling abroad and studying some elements of the Deen so I thought I should give back to the community. After teaching part-time for 4 years I decide that I wanted a permanent career change as I found teaching at LNS an incredibly rewarding experience so I went back to university and became a fully qualified teacher alhamdullilah.
How would you define a great lesson?
One that impacts on the hearts of the students. This will be different to each student.
What do you enjoy about teaching at an all girls school?
You can be yourself. It’s a really friendly environment for both students and teachers, a feeling of sisterhood is clearly present amongst all.
If you could only give one piece of advice to a student what would it be?
It would have to be the advice of the blessed Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, when he said ‘…Take advantage of your youth before your old age…” I feel this is an invaluable piece of advice. When you’re young you have your whole world ahead of you. We’re fortunate enough to live in a society where few limits are set on what we can achieve. How many of us wish we could turn back the clock and relive the zeal of our youth?
What would be your dream school trip?
To an animal reserve in South Africa for all the students to experience the wonder of Allah’s creation.
What do you enjoy doing in your spare time?
Do I have any spare time?!? J I enjoy relaxing with family and friends.
If you weren’t a teacher what other profession do you think you would choose?
Hmmm, my profession before I became a full time teacher was in an office. But if I wasn’t a teacher now and I could choose whatever career I wanted then I would choose to work with animals at maybe a rescue center or something similar.
What did you want to be when you were a child?
I wanted to work on the stock exchange in central London!
What’s your favourite inspirational quote?
“In order to be great people, you have to know the great people you once were” – Malcolm X
And finally, what does education mean to you?
This Ummah is an Ummah of education. The very first revelation from God was ‘Read’, indicating its value in society. Wholesome education is a means by which society becomes liberated. We are so fortunate in the UK that we all have access to an education, we don’t have to struggle like Malala Yousafzai did in Afghanistan. We should encourage our youngsters to take full advantage of this opportunity they have.
Thank you so much to Ust Tahira for sharing your time with us. Join us next month and see who will be telling us their story.
