NURUL IRDINA

 

RELIGIOUS SUBJECTS IN MALAYSIA CURRICULUM

 

  Malaysia is a society of many faiths and traditions, providing a fertile environment for young people to grow in religious awareness alongside their secular education. The official faith of Malaysia is a compassionate and tolerant Islam, overseen by the hereditary Rulers who are sworn to protect the rights of all Malaysians in their care, regardless of faith. Islamic family law applies to Muslims only, and all groups are taught to be respectful of each other.

     Islamic education curriculum is Islamic education materials in the form of activities, knowledge and experience that are deliberately and systematically given to students in order to achieve the goals of Islamic education(H.syamsul Bahri Tanrere, 1993). According to Abdul Halim el-Muhammady (1991), Islamic education is a process of educating and training the human mind, body and spirit based on Islamic values ​​that are sourced from revelation - al-Quran and al-Sunnah to give birth to people who are pious and devote themselves to Allah SWT alone. Islamic education also aims to achieve a balance of growth from the human personality as a whole through psychological exercises, common sense, intelligence, feelings and senses. Therefore, Islamic education must develop all aspects of human life, both spiritual, intellectual, imagination (fantasy), physical, scientific, language, both individually and in groups, and encourage these aspects towards goodness and the achievement of perfection in life (Abdul Raof Dalip , 1990).

      Moral Education is a program that educates students to become moral or virtuous people by emphasizing the development of moral thinking, moral feelings and moral behavior. Moral Education in primary schools focuses on cultivating the spiritual and moral strength of students through the appreciation and practice of the pure values ​​of the Malaysian society found in the religions, traditions and customs of various races in this country. This allows them to be individuals who are morally and socially responsible for all decisions and actions taken. The revised curriculum places emphasis on noble values ​​and patriotic spirit to make students aware of their role and responsibilities as advanced citizens and a knowledgeable society. Students are taught to think, have broad knowledge, have high ethics, be wise, and be able to use information and communication technology effectively.

     The education system implemented in a country is a vehicle to educate children to become successful people and to know the culture and the surrounding environment as well as to convey the national ideology to the community through the application of understanding and positive values ​​for racial unity among the young generation to come. Co-curriculum is important to realize the concept of knowledge, experience and skills across the curriculum where it includes physical education activities, arts and recreation, science and technology activities as well as group and social activities.

CHALLENGES FOR RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

     Malaysian society is a multi-religious and multi-cultural society that lives peacefully and peacefully and maintains its uniqueness. This diversity makes Malaysia a country that is often emulated by the international community. However, the plurality is also outlined as one of the main challenges in the mission to succeed in the development of the country towards achieving the status of a developed country. Cultural diversity is a concept or idea related to belief, acknowledgment and recognition of the diversity and elements of cultural and ethnic diversity that exist that affect the lifestyle, social experience and personal identity of a nation. Cultural diversity includes the understanding, appreciation and evaluation of a person's culture and ethnic community.

     First, the issue of Islamophobia and prejudice against Muslims among non-Muslims became more apparent after the events of September 11, 2001. Even Muslims were considered terrorists. Prejudice is not only about Muslims but also about the religion of Islam itself. This prejudice that happened because the non-Muslim community in the West, even in Malaysia itself, did not get a clear explanation of the sanctity of Islamic teachings. This is because western media sources and channels give a bad and biased image of Muslims and the Islamic religion.

     Second, according to Mior Khairul Azrin (2011) there is a strained relationship between Muslim and non-Muslim students, lack of socializing between Muslim students and non-Muslim students especially after school hours, lack of knowledge and lack of deep understanding of culture, practices, and customs races. This strained relationship problem may be due to students not understanding the concept of socializing in Islam. Even as a curriculum implementer, teachers should examine each student's culture and have in-depth knowledge of students to improve their teaching performance. This is consistent with the study by Abdul Razaq et al. (2010), related to the diversity of students and schools: a case study in the state of Pahang shows that students still have a simple and unsatisfactory perspective on the concept of cultural diversity that exists in schools. This happens because the school and teachers lack exposure and encouragement to students in accepting diversity at school. In implementing this PA21, there are several important issues related to the culture of a community or society that need to be given attention, especially in a multi-ethnic and multi-religious society.

     The concept of cultural diversity is an educational concept that gives educational opportunities to all students who are different from aspects of ethnicity, descent, language, customs and culture to get a fair and equal education and to interact and understand each friend in the classroom well. This can be achieved when PA21 emphasizes five out of six student aspirations touching on knowledge, thinking skills, leadership skills, ethics and spirituality and national identity. 

REFERENCES

Black, S.(2002): Extracurricular Activities and Academic Performance Go Hand in Hand. American School Board Journal. 

Mahoney, R.W; Larson, R.W., Eccles, J.S. & Lord, H. (2005): Organized activities as contexts of development: Extracurricular activities, after-school and community programs. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. 

Chumbler N. R. (1996). An empirical test of a theory of factors affecting life satisfaction: Understanding the role of religious experience. Journal of Psychology and Theology, 24, 220–232.

Allport G. W., & Ross J. M. (1967). Personal religious orientation and prejudice. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 5, 432–443.