In an effort to bring madrasa students into the educational mainstream, madrasas are being encouraged to introduce more modern subjects, such as science, into their curricula. But as this article argues, debates over the introduction of modern subjects in madrasas have been unable to appreciate the essential dichotomy between 'ilm' and 'fann', the twin strands of knowledge around which madrasa education is based. Other kinds of knowledge, including science, are thus, simply considered as 'add-ons' to this core knowledge. What is absent is even an attempt to synthesise diverse knowledge strands.