The Role of Islamic Culture Curriculum in Saudi Universities in Promoting Women’s Rights

Abstract

Despite the legal and educational reforms under Vision 2030, this research argues that a gap remains between policy advancements and societal awareness of women's rights principles in Islam (WRPI) among Saudi University students. Through a qualitative case study at a leading Saudi University, including content analysis and semi-structured interviews, this research explores how the Islamic Cultural Curriculum (ICC) influences women students' perceptions of their rights. This study integrates Freire's Critical Pedagogy and Tibbitt's Human Rights Education models to advocate for a transformative approach incorporating gender justice and peace education in line with Islamic principles. Findings reveal that the ICC content and teaching strategies contain a blend of preaching, indoctrination, and marginalisation of women's agency as rights holders in the Islamic framework. The analysis explores how the current ICC discourages critical engagement instead of promoting discussion and reflection, reinforcing hierarchical gender norms through rigid teaching methods and structure that presents knowledge as static and unquestionable. As these findings contradict WRPI, this research suggests that applying the foundation (Al-Taʾṣīl) methodology within a critical, dialogical framework can reconcile WRPI with contemporary gender issues, needs and rights. Overall, this research provides a multidisciplinary analysis of the Islamic approach to women's rights, transformational higher education, and gender justice.