Religious Moderation in Islamic Education: Natural Intra-Religious Student Interactions at MAN 1 Madiun

Religious moderation is a fundamental element of Islamic education within Indonesia’s increasingly plural and dynamic social context. This study aims to analyze the practices of religious moderation through students’ interactions within an Islamic senior secondary school, namely MAN 1 Madiun, involving students from different Islamic organizational backgrounds. Employing a descriptive qualitative approach, data were collected through direct observation and in-depth interviews with purposively selected students, enabling the exploration of students’ lived religious experiences in their natural school setting. The findings indicate that religious activities, such as istighosah, collective Qur’an recitation, and congregational prayers, are conducted inclusively without segregation based on organizational affiliation. Technical differences in worship practices, including the use of qunut supplication in the dawn prayer, are understood as legitimate forms of Islamic diversity and are accepted without generating conflict. The novelty of this study lies in its empirical evidence derived from students’ everyday interactions, demonstrating that daily social engagement serves as an effective medium for internalizing values of religious moderation. Furthermore, non-discriminatory institutional policies play a crucial role in fostering a tolerant and cohesive educational environment. These findings contribute to the development of moderate Islamic pedagogy by emphasizing structured religious habituation, students’ social experiences, and inclusive school governance as key strategies for strengthening religious moderation, offering valuable insights for other Islamic educational institutions with similar diverse contexts