The Implementation of Integrated Islamic Education (IIE) in Malaysian Islamic Religious Secondary Schools from Education Administrators’ Perspectives

Abstract

This study is based on the premise that there is a need for an integrated Islamic education (IIE) curriculum that could develop the whole person of Muslim children. It examines the school administrators and educational officers’ views on the key aspects related to the effectiveness of the implementation of the IIE curriculum, such as the understanding of the IIE’s concept and the teaching and assessment techniques of IIE. The study is using qualitative method; it employed interviews with 12 respondents from the National Religious Secondary School (SMKA) and Selangor Islamic Religious Department (JAIS) schools and two educational officers. The findings identified that Islamic education school administrators have positive attitudes towards IIE, have adequate knowledge of the integrated concept of Islamic education and highly encourage their teachers to use various pedagogical methods in teaching IIE. The findings also indicate that the schools have implemented a systematic assessment for students’ academic achievement, but only some schools have assessed the behavioural aspects of their students. Despite these positive results, the study reveals a few problems in implementing IIE, such as exam-oriented trends and the inadequacy of professionally certified teachers in some schools, which could hinder its effectiveness.