Learning Morality, Inequalities, and Faith: Christian and Muslim Schools in Tanzania by Hansjörg Dilger (review)

Reviewed by: Learning Morality, Inequalities, and Faith: Christian and Muslim Schools in Tanzania by Hansjörg Dilger Mara A. Leichtman BOOK REVIEW of Dilger, Hansjörg. 2022. Learning Morality, Inequalities, and Faith: Christian and Muslim Schools in Tanzania. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 292 pp. $99.99 (cloth). Learning Morality, Inequalities, and Faith offers a unique approach to faith-oriented schooling in the context of competition for students in an era of mass education and the "widely perceived 'failure' of public schools" in Tanzania (1). German anthropologist Hansjörg Dilger, on the basis of ethnographic fieldwork conducted between 2008 and 2010, here compares newly established Christian and Muslim schools in Dar es Salaam. The former are particularly attractive for the growing urban middle classes (both Christian and Muslim), whereas the latter are weaker performing and cater to Muslim families from poorer socioeconomic backgrounds. For Dilger, faith-oriented schools are simultaneously individual and political affairs, as neoliberalism and privatization have opened a new marketplace for high-quality education that socializes children in religious morals and values. Drawing from theories within education and the anthropology of ethics, Dilger explores quests of students and teachers for "a good life" (chap. 1). He grounds their academic journeys in a wider context of historical and political-economic forces, Christian-Muslim differences, and socioeconomic inequalities. Values taught and learned include "consciousness of the self and others; body and dress; social status and difference; the presence of, and ways of engaging with, religious difference; notions of doing good and bad; the goals of learning and work; and relationships of affect and belonging" (14). Dilger does not study only one school, or the schools of only one faith community. He studies six private primary and secondary schools: neo-Pentecostal, reformist Muslim, and Roman Catholic. Each school follows the same secular state curriculum and is ranked according to student success in national exams. Moral values and religious content are thus taught in elective courses and in attached mosques and churches. This methodology enables analysis of "highly unequal positions": Christian schools benefit from more privilege, and the disadvantaged position of Muslim schools reflects "educational policies and the governance of religious difference during colonial and postcolonial times" (19), presented in Part 1. Kiswahili remains the medium of instruction at primary schools, but English is mandated at the secondary level and in higher education. Many Tanzanian students struggle with this transition and the resulting language gap. Religious instruction is voluntary, and it thereby lacks clear government guidelines and support for [End Page 154] stressing religious equality and neutrality. Nevertheless, the government monitors religious institutions. Dilger explores the contentious development of the National Muslim Council of Tanzania and the required registration of faith-based organizations with government agencies. The second part of the book consists of illuminating case studies. The neo-Pentecostal schools of St. Mary's illustrated in chapter 4 "promise prosperity and claim to be able to free followers from the influence of evil spirits" (102). Dilger describes how rumors of a haunted school property reflect the perceived immorality of urban space, involving, for example, sexual relations and HIV. School fees are costly and include meals and rides on a school bus (poorer schools are unable to offer transportation for their students). Teachers prefer to work at Christian schools, which pay higher salaries, resulting in a strong work ethic and academic reputation. Connections formed by students (and teachers) extend beyond the schools to kinship, ethnicity, and rural-urban ties; material and immaterial aspirations of middle-class formation; allegiance to the Tanzanian nation; and faith-oriented identities and practices. Nevertheless, while instilling Christian values and so-called good living (grounded in hope, sharing, and other such notions), St. Mary's claims its school network is not Christian and emphasizes the "non-denominational teaching of values" (129). Dilger provides fascinating examples of spirit possession and healing, which particularly target Muslim girls. Chapter 5 turns to two gender-segregated Islamic schools. Dilger analyzes the Muslim discourse of historical marginalization in Tanzania, perceptions of the superiority of Christian education, and the crackdown on Muslims in the aftermath of the 1998 bombing of US embassies in Dar es Salaam and Nairobi. He examines ethical frameworks as found...