Dr. Kahera holds a Masters in Architecture from MIT and a Ph.D. in Middle Eastern Studies from Princeton.  He says: '' I subscribe to Mark twain's saying that 'travel is the enemy of ignorance.'  My travel in Europe, Africa and the Middle east - Cairo, Jeddah, Riyadh, Umm Durman - was essential to forming my world view.  It gave me both practical knowledge of these non-western cultures and a greater awareness of the value of knowledge.  So the travel produced two kinds of benefits for my students: real-world experience and a certain approach to the students themselves.  I base my teaching on Chomsky's idea that "knowledge is power."  This means, first that students should have power and freedom to pursue knowledge that's personally important to them and, second, that they may examine subjects or issues according to their own idiosyncrasies.  But it must be rigorous also.  So, I concentrate on giving the students the ability to think, analyze, digest and comprehend. Mediocre ideas will only produce mediocre people. My classroom is vibrant and alive, but rigorous at the same time."

His Studies in Contemporary Islam

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