10 Questions to Ask Before Booking a Qur'an Teacher

Almost every teacher seems wonderful in the first message. The profile is polished, the reply is warm, and within a minute you are being asked which day suits you. None of that tells you whether this is the person who should be correcting your recitation — or your child's — week after week. The only way to know is to ask, before you settle into a regular schedule.

This is a short interview, not an interrogation. You are about to entrust someone with your relationship to the Book of Allah, and a good teacher will be glad you take that seriously. Below are ten questions worth asking, what a reassuring answer sounds like, and the replies that should make you pause. On My Tijarah you can message a teacher before you book, so bring the key ones there or to a trial lesson.

Ibn Sirin, may Allah have mercy on him, was speaking about hadith, but the principle reaches every door of knowledge. You are not just buying lessons; you are choosing a source. That single shift in mindset is what turns a casual booking into a careful one.

First, get clear on your own goal

Before you can judge an answer, you need to know what you are asking for. A complete beginner learning to read, an adult fixing tajweed, and a child starting hifz need three very different teachers. Decide which of these describes you: learning to read Arabic letters, improving recitation and tajweed, memorising, or revising what you already have. Say it plainly when you reach out — the right teacher will immediately tailor the conversation to it, and a weaker one will stay vague.

If you are still weighing the whole decision, our complete guide to choosing a Qur'an teacher covers the wider ground. The questions here are the practical layer on top: what to actually say once you have a shortlist.

Ask about teaching, not admin

A good platform removes the busywork so you can focus on what matters. On My Tijarah every teacher is vetted, their qualifications and student reviews sit on their profile, and the scheduling, your timezone, secure payment and the lesson call itself are all handled for you. That means your questions do not need to touch any of the admin — no chasing a teacher for their fees, working out how to pay them, or wondering which app the lesson is on. You can spend every question on the one thing only you can judge: whether this teacher is right for you.

The ten questions

1. What is your background — and do you have an ijazah?

A vetted profile tells you a lot, but it is still worth hearing it in their own words. Ask where they studied, with whom, and for how long. For recitation, ask whether they hold an ijazah — a documented authorisation to teach a recitation, with a chain (sanad) going back through their teachers. An ijazah is not strictly required for teaching beginners to read, but it is strong evidence of verified competence, especially for tajweed and hifz. A confident teacher names their teachers without hesitation; vague or evasive answers about who taught them are a warning sign.

If the term is new to you, read what ijazah and sanad actually mean before you ask, so you can tell a real answer from a marketing line.

2. What is your teaching method?

You want to hear a structure, not a vibe. A good answer describes a clear path: for a beginner, perhaps Qaida first to build letter recognition and joining, then short surahs; for tajweed, rule-by-rule with applied recitation; for hifz, a system of new memorisation plus daily and long-term revision. If the reply is only "we just read together every lesson" with no progression, ask how they decide what you work on each week. The absence of any method is itself the answer.

3. How do you correct mistakes?

This is one of the most revealing questions, because you will spend most of every lesson being corrected. You want someone patient and clear, who explains why something is wrong and models the right way — not someone who sighs, rushes, or shames. The Prophet's own teaching was the standard here.

The Companion Mu'awiyah ibn al-Hakam (may Allah be pleased with him) once spoke in prayer out of ignorance, and described how the Prophet ﷺ corrected him: "I have not seen a teacher before him or after him who taught better than he. By Allah, he did not scold me, strike me, or revile me" (Sahih Muslim 537). Gentle, firm correction is not softness — it is excellence. A teacher who makes you afraid to recite will slow you down, not speed you up.

4. What does a typical lesson look like?

Ask them to walk you through a normal session minute by minute: how it opens, how much of the hour you spend actually reciting, and how the time is split between new material and revision. Because lessons on My Tijarah are one-to-one, the whole session is yours — and a good teacher will have you reciting for most of it, not listening to them talk. There is no substitute for the teacher hearing only your voice. A vague answer here often means a vague lesson.

5. What should I do between lessons?

Progress is made in the six days you do not see your teacher, not the one hour you do. A serious teacher sets clear, specific homework — a passage to drill, a rule to apply, a portion to revise — and checks it at the next lesson. Ask how much daily practice they expect and how they want you to prepare. If the honest answer is that there is no homework and no expectation, lower your own expectations of progress to match.

It helps to arrive ready, too: here is how to prepare for your first online lesson so you do not waste the trial on setup.

6. How will we track progress?

Ask how you will know you are improving in three months. Good answers are concrete: a record of pages covered and rules mastered, periodic recitation reviews, short notes after each lesson, or for hifz a revision log. If there is no way to measure progress, it becomes very easy to drift for a year and feel you have moved nowhere. For a child especially, ask how the teacher will keep you, the parent, informed.

7. Have you taught students like me before?

Experience is specific. A brilliant hifz teacher may not be the right fit for a forty-year-old revert learning the letters for the first time, and a wonderful children's teacher may not suit a sister wanting advanced tajweed. Ask directly: have you taught adult beginners? Reverts? Young children? Someone working towards an ijazah? You want a yes that comes with detail, not a yes that comes with hesitation.

8. Can you commit to a consistent weekly time?

Consistency beats intensity. A regular weekly rhythm is what builds momentum, especially for children and for hifz, so ask whether the teacher can reliably keep the same slot with you over the long term. You set a time that works in your own timezone when you book, and the reminders and the lesson call are taken care of for you — so the only thing to confirm with the teacher is that they can genuinely commit to it week after week, rather than constantly rescheduling.

9. How will you keep me — or my child — motivated?

Motivation fades; good teachers plan for it. Ask how they keep lessons engaging from week to week, how they handle a tired or discouraged student, and how they mark progress so it feels real. For children especially, warmth and patience here decide whether they grow to love the Qur'an or quietly come to dread the lesson. A teacher who has thought about this will have ready, concrete answers.

10. Can we start with a trial lesson?

This is the most important question, because everything above is words until you sit in a real lesson. A trial lets you hear how they explain, how they correct, and whether you actually understand them — accent, pace and clarity all matter over a video call. On My Tijarah you can book a first lesson to try a teacher before settling into a regular schedule; a confident teacher welcomes that, and reluctance to be heard before you commit tells you something on its own.

The scholars explained this command broadly: when you do not know, turn to those who do. Choosing whom to ask is the first act of seeking knowledge — and asking good questions before you book is simply taking that command seriously.

Green flags and red flags

Beyond the specific answers, watch how the teacher handles the conversation itself. The manner often tells you as much as the content.

Extra questions for a child's teacher

If you are booking for a child, a few questions matter more. Ask how the teacher keeps young children engaged for the lesson length, how they handle a child who is tired or distracted, and how they will keep you updated as the parent. Patience and warmth are non-negotiable: a harsh first teacher can sour a child on the Qur'an for years, while a gentle one can make them love it.

Our guide on choosing a Qur'an teacher for your child goes deeper into ages, stages and red flags specific to young learners.

After the trial: how to decide

Once you have had a trial or two, do not just go on a feeling. Walk through a short, honest review while it is fresh.

The ideal you are looking for is a teacher who embodies a simple description the Prophet ﷺ gave of the best of people.

A teacher who is still learning, still reciting, still correcting their own recitation, and who teaches with care — that is the one worth booking. When you are ready, you can find a vetted Qur'an or Arabic teacher on My Tijarah and put these questions to them directly, with the vetting, scheduling, payment and lesson call already taken care of.