Extremely useful and rewarding. The content is really worth the effort to listen and understand.

Superb course. A good introduction to a topic that would otherwise require months to explore.

Very in depth thought provoking material delivered in a logical and compelling manner.

I enjoyed so much, discovered a new fascinating world for me.

Excellent! An awesome experience.

Excellent course, great teacher

Very detailed and comprehensive

Full of details and insights

Excellent course. :)

Magnificent

Awesome!!

Exploring diverse perspectives, from Brown's "Constitution in a Non-Constitutional World" to Huntington's "Political Order in Changing Societies" and Sadiq Al-Azm's works, alongside Weber's insights on modernity, has deepened my understanding. Themes like Islam's struggle with modernity and models of adaptation were elucidated. Additionally, materials like Chibli Mallat's "The Renewal of Islamic Law" provided crucial context. Inspired by Sami Zubaida's remark, "Neither the West nor Islam are homogeneous entities,".Throughout this course, I gained a deep understanding of the intricate and diverse dynamics present in Islamic countries across a vast geographical expanse from West Africa to East Asia. Additionally, I delved into the unique cultural, political, and economic landscapes of countries like Tunisia and Turkey, gaining a comprehensive understanding of the diverse factors that shape these regions. Studying public figures like Hassan Abd Al-Turabi, Muhammad Ali Jinnah, and Chinua Achebe, and examining the constitutions of Islamic countries, offered profound insights into ethnic diversity and women's roles. Concepts like kleptocracy and historical events such as the Treaty of Gandamak further enriched my understanding. Max Weber's assertion, "To take a practical political stand is one thing, and to analyze political structures and party positions is another," deeply resonated throughout this course.

While working from home, our team has been encouraged to find learning opportunities that can expand our understanding of the areas in which we have professional interest. This course has been a wonderful opportunity to learn how Muslim countries have struggled with the idea of democracy and constitutionalism in the creation of their countries. Dr Ebrahim Afsah’s excellent course has been a definite building block of my understanding of the region of the world in which I struggle to comprehend political policy. The historical context of constitutional issues which this course covered will go a long way in how I will understand ideologic issues that I come across. Understanding historical context is always an issue when looking at how countries develop their foreign policies, and if you have a foundational understanding in how that country developed its own government, it definitely helps you understand how they not only look at themselves, but also how they deal with other counties, whether they follow traditional government building or not. This course was definitely one I would and have admonish others who desire a deeper understanding of the issues these governments have and I am looking forward to finding and completing other courses in this vein.

Respectfully submitted,

John Latham

Kindly take note the course is good. Learnt many things in the course. Kindly take note that Singapore is based on the so called failed system "meritocracy". After having completed the course, I was sexually harassed by political cartels. University of Copenhagen is a good university and they are just insulting us here. Singapore is not welcoming to muslims. Here , they are enforcing capitalism and bad bereaucracy. Certainly , the results of the elections is fake and made up of lies that " need" to be falsely enforced. Certainly , I noticed that they are empowering the bad leadership here. As such , Singapore is a bad and false system that has failed. Much needed syariah is needed to be introduced with fair shares given to the minority muslims. Certainly this is not a God friendly area and hostilities are increasing through financial corruption and fake socioelitism which is actually theft that is not detected.Overall , good course. I am craving Danish shortbread after the course.

I must say that this is one of the most inspiring, eye-opening and lucid courses I've ever taken at Coursera. While the emphasis is placed on the social and economic factors that shaped the Muslim societies, thus rendering the religious factor secondary, this course provides an alternative lense in understanding the region. I particularly like the way the instructor challenges the well-established narratives about the region and gives us the empirical/historical facts behind the real causes that shaped the Muslim world as we know it! I have already recommended it to all of my politically-minded friends and would do so the same for everyone else interested in the region or who wants to better understand the news at least :D

Para poder entender la complejidad del mundo musulmán, necesitamos recibir información sobre su historia, sus sistemas de organización, invasiones de poderes externos y los enfrentamientos internos que a lo largo de los años han sufrido estos países. Es imposible entender la actualidad si no nos damos un tiempo para entender el pasado, y creo que este curso es esencial para empezar a vislumbrar el porqué de tantas luchas y conflictos en la actualidad. Además el curso viene acompañado de una buena selección de libros que nos permiten ahondar en el tema. Todo esto nos ayuda a entender mejor la situación de nuestro mundo, eliminar prejuicios, que buena falta nos hace.

A very insightful and interesting look into the Muslim World with an in depth description of every region and its situation. The professor is incredibly educated with the material and the team has created an incredible course that is full of passion while maintaining a sense of humbleness and simplicity. I cannot stress enough how high quality the course is both in content and in production. I would say a footing in history would be recommended for this course, but it covers so much; history, law, economics, and even psychology. It's an invaluable course and I am saddened by the fact I am limited in how much praise I can give it.

I enjoyed this (as my first) coursera course from Ebrahim Afsah. I feel now to have a comprehensive overview about Arabic history and colonial past. I've learned to understand the struggles of the Arab world to be dissatisfied by capitalism and communism. The course also allowed a critical point of view on the missing self-criticism of the Arab World. All in all, although this was a lot of information to take in, i can say that I would love to take other courses by this Professor and his team. It was professional but also entertaining, with good materials and personal insights. Thank you and I believe we will see us again.

It has been an excellent course, really very useful, I am very interesting the way to face the same on the part of the teacher, with a diagram that was very clear and didactic. The development of a theme as complex as this, especially for Westerners who really have little access to reliable sources in the face of the issue, given that we always find political and religious interests hidden behind. Really very good, I am currently attending the course on the failure of democracies after the Arab Spring. A pleasure greetings and I would like to continue investigating on this subject that I am passionate about.

For a survey course, this module does a fantastic job of presenting the various struggles and discourses in the Muslim world, as well as contextualizing its inherent problems both historically and within present-day. It does so objectively, without sacrificing important reflection in the name of political correctness. I recommend this course as a jump-off point for anyone who wants to better understand this topic on an introductory level, or would like to later pursue independent study into more complex or narrow topics. Thank you Professor Afsah!

This is one of the best courses I have ever studied. It gives extensive insight in the political, cultural, historical and institutional backgrond of contemporary muslim countries. It provides sociological and interpretative threads to understand the main challenges met by these peoples in their "clash" with modernity, in a heartful and deeply researched attempt to find a way out of backwardness and radicalization, an attempt that defies radicalized and istitutionalized Islamic views, but also profoundly respects Islam itself.

Really good course, I recommend it to anyone working in the MENA region as a journalist, or business person.

Great presentation of the subject. Professor Afsah's teaching style, insights and critical theory approach combined with pragmatic reflections is very enlightening and useful for me as a journalist working in Islamic nations.

I like the recap checks mid lesson, that's useful, as I'm working and get tired, so it's a good check on my own concentration levels.

The course was engaging and full of interesting information about different regions where the religion of Islam is present. The instructor was presenting the ideas very well, with good intonation and the ability to engage with the viewers. I would recommend this course to anyone interested in state affairs within the Muslim World. Personally, I have learned a lot about the economy, politics, and the law of the countries with a predominantly Muslim population.

To me the course was a reality of what is happening in the muslim world. What We need to answer is question that we always hear from our schoolers is Islam complete civilization that answers all human needs? If it is then our Ulima must work and get the answers from Quran and the Sunnah.

I want to thank whole heartedly and pray Allah to protect him wherever he is Dr. Ebrahim Afsah, who changed partially my thinking towards Muslim ulima, Islam in general.

Truly excellent course content that really serves as an excellent entry for people new to this field.

My one crib is with the testing methods employed in the course. The quizzes were far too easy and the peer review system does not really give comprehensive feedback. I understand that grading is a huge problem for online education, and I wont claim to have the answers to this, but this really needs to be fixed to help the students learn more.