Expert comment: How educators can better support Muslim students during Ramadan?

As Ramadan approaches, many Muslims will be preparing for a month of fasting from dawn until dusk. How can educators best support Muslim students to thrive academically while observing this important religious period?

Louise Taylor, Professor of Education and Student Experience in Oxford Brookes University’s School of Psychology, Social Work and Public Health, discusses how schools and universities can take a more inclusive approach, drawing on an evidence-based guide she developed with colleagues, ‘Creating an Inclusive Approach to Teaching and Learning During Ramadan’.

What motivated you and your colleagues to develop this guide on teaching and learning during Ramadan?

In the UK, we know that Muslim students tend to have poorer educational experiences than non-religious students, facing higher levels of harassment, racism, and social exclusion — for example, when social or networking events centre on alcohol. One of my own Muslim students was brave enough to explain to me how they were finding it difficult to concentrate during an afternoon teaching session while fasting during Ramadan. I was struck by how little institutional guidance or awareness there was around Ramadan, despite its significance for many students. That experience prompted my colleagues and I to embark on a nationwide project to explore what educators across the UK were, and were not, doing to support Muslim students during this period. This ultimately led to the development of the guide.

What are the biggest misconceptions about Ramadan that educators should be aware of?

The first is the assumption that staff or students should avoid eating or drinking in front of Muslim students who are fasting. Fasting Muslims generally will not expect others to avoid eating and drinking in their presence. However, it can be thoughtful to acknowledge that students may be fasting and, where appropriate, to check that they are comfortable. 

A second misconception is that students will automatically know they can request  adjustments, for example in relation to assessment deadlines. In reality, many students are unaware that religious observance can be grounds for such adjustments, and even when they are aware, they may feel uncomfortable asking. This places the responsibility on educators and institutions to make support visible and to plan assessments in ways that avoid clashes with Ramadan wherever possible.

How can fasting affect students’ academic engagement and wellbeing?

For many Muslim students, Ramadan is a time of deepening their relationship with Allah, reflection, and charity, but also one of joy, excitement, and community. Fasting, which is one of the Five Pillars of Islam, lasts from dawn until sunset and can extend to up to 16 hours per day, depending on the time of year.

Research suggests that it is not fasting itself that has the greatest impact on academic engagement and wellbeing, but the altered and disrupted sleep patterns associated with Ramadan. Night prayers and early waking for the pre-dawn meal mean that many Muslims sleep less during this period, and the effects of sleep deprivation on cognitive function, concentration, and emotional wellbeing are well established.

What are some of the most practical adjustments teachers can make to support Muslim students during Ramadan?

In the guide, we outline six key steps educators can take to support Muslim students during Ramadan. One of the most important is simply to acknowledge that Ramadan is taking place. We include an email template that course leaders can send to students ahead of time, as our research showed that even a brief acknowledgement can go a long way towards helping students feel recognised and supported.

A second key adjustment is to avoid making assumptions and to speak directly with Muslim students about what they would find helpful. This might include making course materials available online to support asynchronous study, or offering office hours at times that work better for them. There is no one-size-fits-all approach, so open, context-specific conversations are essential in understanding how best to support students.

Why is it important to move beyond ad hoc classroom adjustments and adopt more inclusive practice?

Ad hoc adjustments place a disproportionate burden on both students and educators. When students who are fasting have to request individual adjustments, this creates unnecessary additional work for them and can further exacerbate existing inequities. These requests also take time for educators to process and accommodate, often on a case-by-case basis.

By contrast, an inclusive approach built in from the outset reduces the need for reactive, ad hoc changes altogether. In the guide, we propose that institutions take major religious festivals into account during annual planning cycles, and that religious observance becomes a standing agenda item in faculty- or school-level meetings.

What role does direct communication between educators and Muslim students play in shaping supportive approaches?

What emerged strongly from the research was the central role of direct communication between staff and Muslim students in recognising and demonstrating awareness of Ramadan. When educators acknowledged Ramadan in the classroom, students reported feeling ‘seen’ and more able to bring their whole selves into the learning environment, without feeling the need to leave their religion at the door.

How do you hope this guide will influence UK education policy or institutional practices more broadly?

The aims are to raise awareness of the needs of Muslim students, provide practical suggestions to empower educators to make changes in the classroom, and prompt institutional change. While most institutions have policies outlining their legal obligations to students under the Equality Act (2010), the persistence of widespread disparities in degree outcomes between Muslim students and their non-religious peers shows that there is still significant work to do.

The guide is intended to encourage institutional leaders to implement structural changes, such as annual calendar audits, more careful consideration of assessment windows, and the normalisation of time off for Eid al-Fitr (a joyous celebration which marks the end of Ramadan) in the same way that Christmas and Easter are routinely accommodated. Taken together, these changes can help better support Muslim students’ education and wellbeing during Ramadan and beyond.