Digital Ascendancy and Madrasah Education: The Influence of Media Technology on the Life-worlds of Female Madrasah Student

Abstract

The present research explores the phenomenological reflections on the everyday life of madrasah students to comprehend their life-worlds in the context of growing media technology in Pakistan and how religious personalities on media influence the lifeworlds of madrasah students? This ethnographic research was conducted in Ahl-e-Hadith Madrasah, located in Rawalpindi. The research design employed participant observation (PO) and in-depth interviews of madrasah students and teachers belonging to diverse socio-economic and educational backgrounds. The findings suggest that the teachings and principles of the Ahl-e-Hadith sect taught in madrasah profoundly influence the life-worlds of female madrasah students. The major areas of students' life-worlds that are influenced by madrasah discourses include sectarian associations, selection of spouse, dressing patterns, media aesthetics, the configuration of entertainment, and the influence of ulemas on students' everyday life.