Development of a Character Education-based Curriculum for Islamic Religious Education at the Junior Secondary School Level
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.64420/ijces.v3i1.507Keywords:
Development, Character Education-based Curriculum, Islamic Religious Education, Junior Secondary SchoolAbstract
Background: Character education has become a critical priority in contemporary education, particularly within Islamic Religious Education at the junior secondary school level, which plays a strategic role in shaping students’ moral and spiritual development. However, the integration of character values into the curriculum remains limited and often unsystematic. Objective: This study aims to analyse the development of a character education-based curriculum for Islamic Religious Education at the junior secondary school level within the framework of the school-based Curriculum. Method: This research employs a qualitative approach, using a library research design, to examine relevant literature on character education, Islamic Religious Education, and curriculum development. Data were analysed through critical review and conceptual synthesis. Results: The findings indicate that an effective curriculum integrates character values such as honesty, responsibility, discipline, and empathy into learning objectives, content, instructional strategies, and assessment practices. Contextual and value-based learning approaches support meaningful internalisation of these values. Conclusion: A systematically designed curriculum can strengthen both religious understanding and character formation in a balanced manner. Originality/Value: This study provides conceptual novelty in the field of Islamic education curriculum and moral pedagogy by synthesizing a holistic curriculum framework that systematically embeds core character values (honesty, responsibility, discipline, and empathy) across learning objectives, instructional content, contextual pedagogical strategies, and assessment mechanisms concerning the balanced synergy between religious comprehension and moral internalization within the context of school-based Islamic Religious Education at the junior secondary school level, an area that has remained insufficiently systematized. These findings enrich theoretical discourse and serve as a strategic reference for curriculum developers and educators in formulating character-infused religious teaching modules and school-level operational curricula.
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