"There were no degrees in pedagogy or education

per se in medieval Islam. The licence to teach (al-ijazah bi'l-tadris) [54] provided evidence of mastery of the subject taught. But those who held such licences could not be assumed to possess any intimate understanding of child psychology; nor could they be assumed to have any innate love of or compassion for every student. Nor could they, as teachers, be assumed to be motivated purely by a love for knowledge, with pecuniary interests falling beneath their dignity as men of learning. Nor could it be assumed that every student, especially at the elementary level, would approach his studies with the dedication, humility and respect for his teachers necessary for success. Yet, if Muslim educational institutions were to accomplish their mission, these and countless other realities would have to be recognized and addressed. Ibn Hajar al-Haytami's Taqrir al-maqal shows the extent to which medieval Muslim jurists, in their capacity as the veritable school boards of medieval Islam, did just that. Indeed, this work strongly suggests that while the success of Muslim educational institutions was undoubtedly indebted to the brilliance and dedication of the Ghazalis, Ibn Taymiyahs and Ibn Rushds - both as teachers and students - it was no less the result of the contributions, as jurists, to pragmatic, flexible, and ever-evolving school administrative policies.

-Sherman Jackson, "Duty and Discipline in a Medieval Muslim Elementary School: Ibn Hajar al-Haytamî's Taqrîr al-Maqâl," Studies in Muslim Education in Honor of Professor George Makdisi ed. D. Stewart, S. Toorawa and J. Lowry (Great Britain: E.J.W. Gibb Memorial Trust, 2004), 32.