In the Muslim world, great respect is given to individuals who memorize the Quran. Usually, the memorization process begins during childhood one line at a time. Once completed, the male is given the title Hafiz and the female the title Hafiza becoming crown jewels of the community. Such individuals are said to receive high blessings and are rewarded greatly by Allah.
I am no pessimist. It is good to memorize the holy book you believe in – provided you understand the language. I recall during middle school, I memorized and recite poems by Wordsworth, Tennyson and other English writers. Granted, the English from previous centuries was not easy to comprehend, but since I understood the language, I eventually got an idea of what the verses meant. Maybe this is a strategy to implement? Let’s put it another way. You have the book Meditations by Marcus Aurelius in Latin. In 10 years, would you rather learn to recite the book beautifully but have no idea what it means? Or learn the language so you can read the book and understand its contents on your own?
Children should only be put through the memorization program after learning the language of the Quran. This will give them the wisdom to understand it and may even make it easier to memorize it later. Simply doing a copy-paste method from the Arabic institutions will not bring change as the Hafiz from Arab nations understand the language in the Quran easier. A solution is to have two different curriculums in Madrasas. One for direct memorization for those who already understand the language. The second is for those to learn to recite and understand the language. Accept that the Arab speaking world is ahead in terms of memorizing the Quran. But the rest of the Muslims should focus on understanding it first. It builds a skill in children to learn a language for the sake of God. Wouldn’t that serve tremendously for their faith as opposed to memorizing a language they can recite?
In every country, there should be a group of religious scholars who did not know Arabic as their first language but had to learn it and understand. Due to their education, they can understand every word of the Quran when reciting it. A unique title should be given to them. These scholars should serve as teachers to young Muslims like the scholars today who teach to recite. An extra impact of this is that it will prioritize comprehension over memorization – which is needed.