Clarity and confusion: Epistemological struggles with Islamic identity and secular education

Abstract

As a first-year doctoral student, I experience challenges of confronting conflicts between my secular education, my Islamic beliefs, my past in Guyana, and my present and presence in Canada, while simultaneously contemplating my future. In this paper, I share my struggles with identity and epistemology through the contours of clarity, confusion, and twilight as I think about my doctoral research. I will present a brief synopsis of my professional and educational background, as well as my identity as a Muslim immigrant, and examine what emerged from this as a personal epistemology that will guide my qualitative research.