This issue addresses topics that put the learners at the center of research and explores issues of language, culture, and religion as they relate to educators and students. Fathi Ihmedieh shares a study with children in Jordan and the impact of digital gaming on them especially during the pandemic, while Raudah Mohd Yunus shares a study on education as a method to (dis) integrate the Rohinga refugee children in the Malaysian education system. The two authors introduce reviews and analysis of these two important topics and populations. The third article, authored by Cherine Sabry, provides an analysis of the regional education organizations in the Arab World and more specifically zooming into the performance of the Arab League Educational, Cultural and Scientific Organization (ALECSO). The author provides insights on the functions and challenges facing these types of regional educational bodies. Donia Smaali Bouhlila and Imen Hinteti contribute to the debate on using Arabic versus English as the language of instruction, especially in the Gulf States. They provide field-based information to support the importance of using Arabic as a native language in teaching and learning. Maura A. E. Pilotti, Huda Al Mulhem, Halah Al Kuhayli, and Khadija El Alaoui share the case of university students and their performance before and after the pandemic, especially when courses were delivered virtually as the result of lockdowns. All five articles offer new research questions, sound methodology, and generate new knowledge to contribute to larger discussions around the globe on improving teaching and learning in cultural and religious contexts. The articles are followed by a practitioner’s note on the internationally recognized accrediting agency The Council of Islamic Schools in North America (CISNA).
Finally, we have included four book reviews, two of which attempt to zoom into Islamic schools, identity, and pedagogy, while the other two focus on teachers as state builders and higher education experiences and citizenship of Muslim faculty. This issue also includes an interview by Isra Brifkani, our book review editor, with the scholar Muhammed Haron on his research and scholarship in Islamic education. We hope that you spread the word about this journal and follow our media outlets to learn more, and most importantly, “Read.”