Enacting interreligious learning in Indonesian Islamic education

A phenomenological study of teacher practice

Bibliographic Data

ID22167230
AuthorsMuhammad Faishol (State University of Semarang), Wasino Wasino (0000-0002-3400-3694, State University of Semarang), Fakhruddin Fakhruddin (0000-0002-5883-1152, State University of Semarang), Asrori Asrori (0000-0002-0683-3041, State University of Semarang)
Year2026
Volume11
Publication date2026-05-19
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueFrontiers in Education (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2504-284X • E-ISSN: 2504-284X
PublisherFrontiers Media SA (PUBLISHER • CH)
DOI10.3389/feduc.2026.1810960
OpenAlexW7161640938
LanguageEN
References cited10

This phenomenological study investigates how Islamic Religious Education teachers in Indonesian public senior high schools enact interreligious learning. Responding to calls for empirical research on interreligious practices in Southeast Asia, the study examines the lived experiences of 26 teachers across 26 public senior high schools in Banyuwangi, East Java, a regency characterized by significant religious diversity. Drawing on in-depth interviews and document analysis of lesson plans and school policies, the study reveals five essential themes in teachers’ lived experiences: (1) professional identity reorientation from doctrinal transmission toward dialogical facilitation; (2) pedagogical design of structured encounters, including dialogue, case analysis, and cross-religious simulations; (3) integration of local wisdom ( kearifan lokal ) as a medium for interreligious learning; (4) the ecological contingency of teacher agency upon institutional leadership; and (5) persistent structural constraints, including inadequate professional development and inequitable certification access. Building on these empirical findings, the study proposes a three-level model of pedagogical mediation that conceptualizes how religious moderation policy is translated into student dispositions through teachers’ interpretive labor, enacted practice, and institutional conditions. These findings challenge transmission-oriented approaches, revealing interreligious learning as a fragile pedagogical achievement sustained by teachers who reimagine their professional identity within plural contexts

Empirical research · Indonesian · Islam · Plural · Professional development · Professional learning community · Religious education · Transformative learning · Asian Studies and History · Multicultural Education and Local Wisdom · Religious Education and Schools

Tools

Open DOIOpen Access