Students’ Identity Formation: A Case Study of Integrated Islamic Schooling in Indonesia

Abstract

Primary schooling is a critical avenue of children’s development and plays a crucial role in forming individual’s identities. In contemporary Indonesia, integrated Islamic primary schooling has been of great interest among education policy makers, researchers, and practitioners. However, despite this prevalence, the role of integrated Islamic schooling in shaping students’ identities in an Indonesian context remains scarcely examined. This paper investigates primary school leavers’ perceptions of how integrated primary schooling built their future identities. Drawing on findings, integrated Islamic school graduates reported that they could build different identities. The implication of the study is that integrated Islamic schooling as an educational approach can be used to enact character education in primary education.