Sejahtera Academic Framework (SAF)

18 17 Just like in the pre-industrial days of the 1700s when education (or what was left of it) was disrupted into an assembly-line model of the 4Ms (Manpower- Mind- Machine-Money), the next wave of educational disruption is to humanise education yet again, in an increasingly inhumane environment, where schools have become mere factories for mass production of human capital or workers as input for further production process ( homo economicus ). This is an outcome of the secular conventional model that is not acceptable in the nurturing of the "wise" person as reflected by the notion of homo sapiens . Consequent to the re-emergence of homo sapiens against the background of the Anthropocene era, the change must, by and large, present a long-term solution to the current precarious state of affairs, following on from the Holocene era. In IIUM context, it is perhaps also not inappropriate to extend this concept further to Homo Islamicus - the holistic human person or an Insān Sejahtera who has the wisdom and the competencies to contribute to the betterment of of society, which has been the vision and mission of IIUM. Activities that are regarded as anthropocentric in substance, namely those that further deepen the Anthropocene, will have no place in reshaping the future. They are, on the contrary, a threat to humanity and its survival. As such, the nature and meaning of “work-live-play,” as we know it today, will have to be drastically redefined, not unlike the introduction of slavery or forced labour at the height of the industrial revolutions with their long-standing dehumanising consequences, and has become more relevant with movements such as “Black Lives Matter” and the Hong Kong protests. View this within the context of the pandemic (which tends to be no less dehumanising enforced through lockdowns and physical distancing for instance), this is one lesson that must be taken seriously to heart. There is simply no room for another myopic mistake in the name of progress and development that glosses over what is unknown or unanticipated, intentionally or otherwise. This time, the competencies to predict, forecast and build scenarios are imperative before putting lofty ideas into action. It is one of the new skill sets that must not be missed in the futures of education. A RENEWED NORMAL Humanising the world of education IIUM since two years ago, has adopted “humanising education” as its main strategic goal. It is well documented in the IIUM Roadmap 2019-2020 translating into a model of Insān Sejahtera , which are well-aligned to the vision and mission of IIUM. Among other things, the mission statements included an explicit statement on the need for sustainable development whereby the desired result is a state of society where living conditions and resources are mobilised to meet human needs without undermining the integrity and stability of the natural ecosystem. The aspiration is civilisational. The pandemic is a reminder that disruptions will occur - and the disruptions may be either positive or negative. IIUM graduates then, should be equipped to face an uncertain world - not just in terms of knowledge and competencies, but also attitude. IIUM graduates should be able to cope with adversity to come out better than ever. If ever their adversity quotient is measured, it would be high. In this spirit of humanising education in the IIUM mold, the tagline of the university reflects the characteristics of the people in the university - be they students or staff. The core elements of “ Khalīfah. Amānah. Iqra'. Raḥmatan lil- ʿ Ā lamīn ” (KhAIR) are further adopted as our graduate attributes.