Integrating Religious Practice Into Character Education: Pedagogical Insights from Indonesian Islamic Elementary School

Taufikin; Nany Kholilah

Authors

Taufikin Universitas Islam Negeri Sunan Kudus Author
Nany Kholilah Universitas Islam Negeri Sunan Kudus Author

Keywords:

Character Education, Religious Practice, Moral Pedagogy, Islamic School, SDG 4

Abstract

Abstracts Character education has become an essential foundation for achieving quality and sustainable education. However, many educational institutions still struggle to integrate moral and spiritual values into classroom practices, leading to a gap between knowledge and behavior. This study aims to explore how religious practices can be integrated into character education to foster moral and spiritual development among elementary students in Indonesia. Using a qualitative case study design, data were collected through in-depth interviews, participant observation, and document analysis at Madrasah Ibtidaiyah Salafiyah Kajen in Central Java. The participants included a principal, a religious practice teacher, and twelve fifth-grade students. Data were analyzed thematically using an interactive model to identify patterns of value internalization and pedagogical strategies. The findings reveal that religious practice-based learning effectively cultivates discipline, responsibility, empathy, and spiritual awareness among students. Teachers serve as moral exemplars, modeling Islamic values through daily interactions, while the school environment reinforces these values through a culture of worship and social care. Despite challenges such as large class sizes and limited instructional time, the integrated model strengthens moral consistency and religious consciousness. This study concludes that character education rooted in religious practice can provide a holistic and sustainable approach to value formation, contributing to the realization of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 4 on inclusive and equitable quality education

References

Adly Gamal, Mohammed. 2023. “Educating the Glocalised Citizen: Fusing Islamic Values with Global Citizenship in an International School in Qatar.” Globalisation, Societies and Education. doi:10.1080/14767724.2023.2292631.

Anderson, Denise M. 2013. “Overarching Goals, Values, and Assumptions of Integrated Curriculum Design.” SCHOLE: A Journal of Leisure Studies and Recreation Education 28(1):1–10. doi:10.1080/1937156X.2013.11949690.

Arthur, James, ed. 2020. Educating for a Characterful Society: Responsibility and the Public Good. Taylor and Francis.

Astuti. 2024. “Value-Based Islamic Education Management: Developing Leadership and Commitment in Contemporary Islamic School Environments.” Edelweiss Applied Science and Technology 8(5):454–64. doi:10.55214/25768484.v8i5.1709.

Berkowitz, Marvin W. 2022. “Implementing and Assessing Evidence-Based Character Education.” Journal of Education 202(2):191–97. doi:10.1177/00220574211026908.

Bowen, Glenn A. 2009. “Document Analysis as a Qualitative Research Method.” Qualitative Research Journal 9(2):27–40. doi:10.3316/QRJ0902027.

Bronfenbrenner, Urie. 1986. “Ecology of the Family as a Context for Human Development. Research Perspectives.” Developmental Psychology 22(6):723–42. doi:10.1037/0012-1649.22.6.723.

Bronfenbrenner, Urie, and Gary W. Evans. 2000. “Developmental Science in the 21st Century: Emerging Questions, Theoretical Models, Research Designs and Empirical Findings.” Social Development 9(1):115–25. doi:10.1111/1467-9507.00114.

Chasokela, Doris. 2024. “Transformative Learning Theory.” Pp. 99–134 in Exploring Adult Education Through Learning Theory, edited by L. Y. Fındık. IGI Global.

Ciampa, Katia, and Zora M. Wolfe. 2021. “Integrating Character Education into an Elementary Common Core Standards-Aligned Curriculum: A Pilot Study.” Curriculum Perspectives 41(1):59–69. doi:10.1007/s41297-020-00116-2.

Clark, M. Carolyn, and Arthur L. Wilson. 1991. “Context and Rationality in Mezirow’s Theory of Transformational Learning.” Adult Education Quarterly 41(2):75–91. doi:10.1177/0001848191041002002.

Creswell, John W., and J. David Creswell. 2022a. Research Design. USA: SAGE Publications, Inc.

Creswell, John W., and J. David Creswell. 2022b. Research Design: Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed Methods Approaches. 6th ed. New York: SAGE Publication.

Creswell, John W., and Cheryl N. Poth. 2017. Qualitative Inquiry and Research Design: Choosing Among Five Approaches. SAGE Publications.

Curren, Randall. 2023. “Overcoming What Divides Us: Global Civic Friendship and ‘Full Development of the Human Personality.’” Revista Espanola de Pedagogia 81(284):33–50. doi:10.22550/REP81-1-2023-02.

Davis, Brent, and Dennis Sumara. 2006. Complexity and Education: Inquires into Learning, Teaching, and Research. Complexity and Education: Inquires into Learning, Teaching, and Research. Mahwah, NJ, US: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Publishers.

Demirtaş, Zeynep, Mithat Takunyaci, and Rüştü Yeşil. 2023. “Investigation of Religious Education Teacher Candidates’ Cognitive Flexibility Levels and Critical Thinking Tendencies.” Hitit Theology Journal 22(2):723–44. doi:10.14395/hid.1334350.

Eilts, Jule, and Neele Bäker. 2024. “The Role of CU Traits, Empathy and Moral Disengagement in Bullying.” Current Psychology 43(7):6136–48. doi:10.1007/s12144-023-04807-7.

Farmer, Ron, and Suwanti Farmer. 2023. “The Noble Role of Teachers in Values-Based Education.” Pp. 579–91 in Springer International Handbooks of Education. Vol. Part F1708. Springer Nature.

Gürsoy, Ersan, and Mehmet Vatansever. 2025. “Perceptions, Challenges, and Opportunities of Qualitative Research among Inexperienced Medical Academics.” BMC Medical Education 25(1). doi:10.1186/s12909-025-07824-1.

Hamilton, Kathy, Maria Piacentini, and Emma Banister. 2024. “Ethics and Care in Qualitative Research.” Pp. 486–96 in Handbook of Qualitative Research Methods in Marketing, edited by R. W. Belk and C. Otnes. Yale University Press.

Hasbiyallah, Busra Nur Duran, and Saca Suhendi. 2024. “INDONESIAN FIQH IN HIGHER EDUCATION: A PATHWAY TO MODERATE AND INCLUSIVE ISLAMIC VALUES.” Jurnal Pendidikan Islam 10(1):149–62. doi:10.15575/jpi.v10i1.26151.

Hidayat, Mupid, Rama Wijaya Abdul Rozak, Kama Abdul Hakam, Maulia Depriya Kembara, and Muhamad Parhan. 2022. “Character Education in Indonesia: How Is It Internalized and Implemented in Virtual Learning?” Cakrawala Pendidikan 41(1):186–98. doi:10.21831/cp.v41i1.45920.

Hidayatullah, Elit Ave, and Syamsuddin Arif. 2022. “Syed Muhammad Naquib Al-Attas’ Exposition on the Concept of Ethics.” Afkar: Jurnal Akidah Dan Pemikiran Islam 24(1):409–46. doi:10.22452/afkar.vol24no1.12.

Jacobs, Heidi Hayes. 1989. Interdisciplinary Curriculum: Design and Implementation. Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, 1250 N. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED316506.

Jalwis. 2023. “Karakter Religius Siswa dan Pengaruhnya Terhadap Sikap Disiplin di Sekolah Menengah Pertama.” Munaddhomah 4(3):529–40. doi:10.31538/munaddhomah.v4i3.469.

Jeynes, William H. 2019. “A Meta-Analysis on the Relationship Between Character Education and Student Achievement and Behavioral Outcomes.” Education and Urban Society 51(1):33–71. doi:10.1177/0013124517747681.

Jones, Peter. 2020. “Critical Transformative Learning and Social Work Education: Jack Mezirow’s Transformative Learning Theory.” Pp. 489–500 in The Routledge Handbook of Critical Pedagogies for Social Work, edited by C. Morley, P. Ablett, C. Noble, and S. Cowden. Taylor and Francis.

Kadir, Zahidah Abd, Safurah Abdul Jalil, Bazilah A. Talip, and Nurul Shuhadah Rosni. 2025. “Enhancing Learning Through Practice-Based Research in New Media Design: Challenges and Creative Approaches.” Pp. 242–49 in Lect. Notes Networks Syst. Vol. 1575 LNNS. Springer Science and Business Media Deutschland GmbH.

Kim, Minh. 2024. “A Snapshot of Creativity in PK-12 Education Policies and Practices in the United States.” Creative Education 15(7):1399–1442. doi:10.4236/ce.2024.157085.

Knott, Eleanor, Aliya Hamid Rao, Kate Summers, and Chana Teeger. 2022. “Interviews in the Social Sciences.” Nature Reviews Methods Primers 2(1). doi:10.1038/s43586-022-00150-6.

Kolb, David. 1984. Experiential Learning: Experience As The Source Of Learning And Development. Vol. 1. New Jersey: Prentice-Hall.

Kurniawati, Atit, Sri Nurhayati, and Nandang Rukanda. 2024. “Enhancing Early Childhood Education Teachers’ Creativity through Professional Development Training Program.” Aulad: Journal on Early Childhood 7(1):141–49. doi:10.31004/aulad.v7i1.537.

Kuroda, Kazuo, and Lauren Nakasato. 2023. “The Historical Development of SDG4: Evolution of the Global Governance of Education.” Pp. 37–53 in Sustainable Development Goals Series. Vol. Part F2748. Springer.

Lickona, Thomas. 2009. Educating for Character: How Our Schools Can Teach Respect and Responsibility. USA and Canada: Random House Publishing Group.

Lickona, Thomas. 2013. “Character Education: The Cultivation of Virtue.” Pp. 591–612 in Instructional-Design Theories and Models: A New Paradigm of Instructional Theory. Vol. 2, edited by C. M. Reigeluth. Taylor and Francis.

Lu, Huiting, and Xiaozhe Yang. 2023. “Teaching Practice of ‘Three Integration’ Based on Chaoxing Learning Software – Taking the Course of ‘Complex Variable Function and Integral Transformation’ as an Example.” Pp. 787–800 in Lecture. Notes. Data Eng. Commun. Tech. Vol. 180. Springer Science and Business Media Deutschland GmbH.

Maksum, Ghufron, Muhtolib, Mahmurudin, Sulaeman, Wiwi Pertiwi, Hidayatul Azizah Gazali, Raudhatul Husna, Zuhrupatul Jannah, Agus Supriadi, Istiqomah, Muzna Attamimi, A. Syaiful Fahmi, Salman Ali, and Dewanti Srihati. 2025. “Religious Values as Foundations of Education: Insights from Teachers’ Perspectives.” Research Journal in Advanced Humanities 6(3). doi:10.58256/tb06n075.

Malin, Yael, and Thomas P. Gumpel. 2023. “Dispositional Mindfulness Plays a Major Role in Adolescents’ Active and Passive Responding to Bully-Victim Dynamics.” Aggressive Behavior 49(5):509–20. doi:10.1002/ab.22087.

Miles, Matthew B., A. Michael Huberman, and Johnny Saldana. 2014. Qualitative Data Analysis. SAGE.

Mohd Yusoff, Mohd Zailani, Aswati Hamzah, Iwan Fajri, Tabrani Za, and Sufriadi Muhammad Yusuf. 2022. “The Effect of Spiritual and Social Norm in Moral Judgement.” International Journal of Adolescence and Youth 27(1):555–68. doi:10.1080/02673843.2022.2156799.

Muassomah, Irwan Abdullah, Istiadah, Anwar Mujahidin, Nurnaningsih Masnawi, and Sohrah. 2020. “Believe in Literature: Character Education for Indonesia’s Youth.” Universal Journal of Educational Research 8(6):2223–31. doi:10.13189/ujer.2020.080605.

Muhtar, Tatang, and Ruswan Dallyono. 2020. “Character Education from the Perspectives of Elementary School Physical Education Teachers.” Cakrawala Pendidikan 39(2):395–408. doi:10.21831/cp.v39i2.30647.

Narvaez, Darcia, and Tonia Bock. 2014. “Developing Ethical Expertise and Moral Personalities.” Pp. 140–58 in Handbook of Moral and Character Education, edited by L. Nucci, D. Narvaez, and T. Krettenauer. Taylor and Francis.

Nasr, Seyyed Hossein. 2002. The Heart of Islam: Enduring Values for Humanity. [San Francisco, Calif.] : HarperSanFrancisco.

Nislev, Eva. 2020. “Integrated Learning.” Pp. 330–51 in Teaching Primary Years: Rethinking curriculum, pedagogy and assessment, edited by D. Pendergast and K. Main. Taylor and Francis.

Noddings, Nel. 2012. “The Caring Relation in Teaching.” Oxford Review of Education 38(6):771–81. doi:10.1080/03054985.2012.745047.

Nowell, Lorelli S., Jill M. Norris, Deborah E. White, and Nancy J. Moules. 2017. “Thematic Analysis: Striving to Meet the Trustworthiness Criteria.” International Journal of Qualitative Methods 16(1):1609406917733847. doi:10.1177/1609406917733847.

Pangastuti, Ratna, M. Suyudi, Machfudz Bahtiar, Nasrul Fuad Erfansyah, and Zaini Abdullah. 2025. “Education Management Strategies for Internalizing Moderate Religious Values in Learning Quran, Hadith, and Aqeedah Akhlaq in Madrasah Ibtidaiyah.” Munaddhomah 6(1):1–12. doi:10.31538/munaddhomah.v6i1.1544.

Park, Nansook, and Christopher Peterson. 2006. “Moral Competence and Character Strengths among Adolescents: The Development and Validation of the Values in Action Inventory of Strengths for Youth.” Journal of Adolescence 29(6):891–909. doi:10.1016/j.adolescence.2006.04.011.

Patton, Michael Quinn. 2014. Qualitative Research & Evaluation Methods: Integrating Theory and Practice. SAGE Publications.

Preiser, Rika. 2024. “Complex Adaptive Systems.” Pp. 86–90 in Elgar Encyclopedia of Interdisciplinarity and Transdisciplinarity, edited by F. Darbellay. Edward Elgar Publishing Ltd.

Severiano, Débora Araújo, Ana Lucia Fontes de Souza Vasconcelos, and Octavio Ribeiro Mendonça Neto. 2025. “Selection of Participants in Qualitative Research.” Pp. 59–70 in Evolving Designs, Applications, Technological Advances, and the Future of Qualitative Research, edited by L. C. Segura, A. L. F. de Souza Vasconcelos, and V. G. Slomski. IGI Global.

Sinaga, Rizky Awaliyah, and Mahariah. 2023. “Internalisasi Karakter Religius pada Siswa melalui Program Praktikum Ibadah dan Zikir.” Munaddhomah 4(4):834–44. doi:10.31538/munaddhomah.v4i4.659.

Subandi, Gondo, Ribut Wahyu Eriyanti, Diah Karmiyati, Nurfaisal Nurfaisal, and Joko Widodo. 2025. “A Response to the Character Crisis: Can a Digital Islamic Character Education Based on Local Wisdom Be the Solution?” Perspectives in Education 43(3):236–53. doi:10.38140/pie.v43i3.8097.

Suking, Arifin, Intan Abdul Razak, and Seftianisa Amay. 2020. “Fostering Student Discipline in Boarding Schools toward Industry 4.0.” International Journal of Innovation, Creativity and Change 12(8):420–32.

Syabuddin, Miftahul Jannah, and Sulaiman. 2020. “The Implementation of Character Education on the Tarbiyah and Teachers Training Faculty at the State Islamic University Indonesia (Morality Reinforcement Approach).” International Journal of Innovation, Creativity and Change 12(12):1–24.

Taddeo, Mariarosaria, and Luciano Floridi. 2018. “How AI Can Be a Force for Good.” Science 361(6404):751–52. doi:10.1126/science.aat5991.

Tariq, Muhammad Usman. 2025. “Integrating Theory and Practice: Transformative Approaches in Practice-Led Research for Professional Development.” Pp. 419–36 in Exploring Practice-Led Research for Professional Development, edited by S. Kwok, P. Yu, and J. Y. Le Corre. IGI Global.

Tatto, Maria Teresa. 2021. “Comparative Research on Teachers and Teacher Education: Global Perspectives to Inform UNESCO’s SDG 4 Agenda.” Oxford Review of Education 47(1):25–44. doi:10.1080/03054985.2020.1842183.

Taufikin, Taufikin. 2021. “Pesantren as the Three Centers of Education Perspective of Ki Hadjar Dewantara.” Dinamika Ilmu 21(1):101–19. doi:10.21093/di.v21i1.3149.

Taufikin, Taufikin, Sri Nurhayati, Habib Badawi, Ahmad Falah, and Moh Sholihuddin. 2025. “Integrating Creative Digital Content in Pesantren: Improving Santri’s Digital Literacy And Islamic Learning.” Edukasia Islamika 10(1):35–54.

Taufikin, Taufikin, Sri Nurhayati, and Makmur Harun. 2025. “Reimagining Classroom Equality: An Academic Inquiry into Surah Al-Fatihah’s Core Values for Inclusivity in Education.” Dinamika Ilmu 25(1):23–44. doi:10.21093/di.v25i1.10008.

Tohri, Ahmad, Abdul Rasyad, Muhammad Sururuddin, and Lalu Muhammad Istiqlal. 2022. “The Urgency of Sasak Local Wisdom-Based Character Education for Elementary School in East Lombok, Indonesia.” International Journal of Evaluation and Research in Education 11(1):333–44. doi:10.11591/ijere.v11i1.21869.

Usman, Tarbiyah, Bahraeni, and Nurhilaliyah. 2025. “Exploring Islamic-Oriented Cooperative Learning through Faith-Driven Collaboration in among University Students in Islamic Education Courses.” International Journal of Learning, Teaching and Educational Research 24(9):922–39. doi:10.26803/ijlter.24.9.44.

Veugelers, Wiel. 2021. “Teachers’ Ethos in Moral Learning.” Pp. 109–21 in The International Handbook of Teacher Ethos: Strengthening Teachers, Supporting Learners, edited by F. Oser, K. Heinrichs, J. Bauer, and T. Lovat. Springer International Publishing.

Walsh, Katie. 2020. “Participant Observation.” Pp. 39–42 in International Encyclopedia of Human Geography (Second Edition), edited by A. Kobayashi. Oxford: Elsevier.

Yanuarto, Wanda Nugroho, Sri Wahyuni, Elfis Suanto, and Ira Hapsari. 2025. “Education That Matters: Investigating the Quality of Secondary Schooling in Support of Sustainable Development Goal 4.” Educational Process: International Journal 18. doi:10.22521/edupij.2025.18.465.

Yin, Robert K. 2014. Case Study Research. SAGE Publications.

Zych, Izabela, and Vicente J. Llorent. 2019. “Affective Empathy and Moral Disengagement Related to Late Adolescent Bullying Perpetration.” Ethics and Behavior 29(7):547–56. doi:10.1080/10508422.2018.1521282.