In the Intersection of Religion, Identity, and Education: The Perceptions of Sunni Muslim Parents Regarding Islam Courses in Austria

This paper contemplates the concepts of religious minority groups, identities, and discrimination at the intersection of politics and education by focusing on the specific case of the Turkish Sunni Muslim population and the Islamic courses and includes a literature review of the research subject on the recent educational policies of the Austrian government regarding Islam education, an analysis of the contemporary documents regarding Quran education of Turkish migrant children in Austria, and the results of 10 semi-structured parent interviews conducted in person and online. After the analysis of the data and the findings of the conducted research inspecting the thoughts and impressions of Turkish Sunni Muslim parents on the topic, it is relevant to say that the Turkish Sunni Muslim in Austria community, contrary to previous assumptions, is a diverse one having different practices, expectations and ideas towards the topic. However, parents often expressed their criticisms of the governmental policies regarding Islam in general, Islamic courses at schools and mosques, and their wish for improvement so that these policies would not cast a shadow on the ideal of the diverse, democratic culture of Austria.