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Jurnal Pendidikan Agama Islam Indonesia (JPAII)

an Open Access Journal

Beyond the Traditional–Modern Binary: A Postcolonial Reading of Pesantren in Islamic Education Studies

Junaidin
STIT Sunan Giri Bima, Indonesia
Indonesia
junaidinmuhaimin@gmail.com
Zainul Abas
UIN Raden Mas Said Surakarta ROR
Indonesia
Hamdan Maghribi
UIN Raden Mas Said Surakarta ROR
Indonesia
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  • Purpose of the Study: This study aims to deconstruct the binary dichotomy of “traditional” versus “modern” (salaf vs. khalaf) in the study of Islamic boarding schools. Using a postcolonial approach, this study examines the conceptual limitations of this binary across four institutional dimensions and proposes a framework of hybridity for the epistemic sovereignty of Islamic Religious Education.

    Methodology: This qualitative study applies postcolonial discourse analysis through a critical literature review of the canonical corpus (Geertz, Dhofier, Steenbrink, van Bruinessen). The analysis was conducted in four stages: deconstructive mapping, disaggregation of the four dimensions, evaluation of the binary’s limitations, and epistemological synthesis.

    Main Findings: The results of this study indicate that the binary dichotomy of traditional–modern is a taxonomy inherited from Orientalist-colonial thought that is rife with teleological bias and deficit-oriented perspectives. In reality, the four institutional dimensions of the pesantren namely, pedagogy, leadership, curriculum, and structure develop asynchronously, thereby forming a dynamic institutional hybridity. Through a process of institutional bricolage, pesantren are able to adapt and assimilate secular disciplines under the epistemic authority of classical Islamic scholarship. Therefore, the imposition of homogeneous and rigid accreditation standards risks triggering institutional epistemicide that is, the gradual erosion of indigenous forms of learning.

    Novelty/Originality of this Study: The novelty of this study lies in its postcolonial deconstruction of the classical typology of pesantren through a four-dimensional analytical matrix. This study introduces the concept of institutional bricolage as the theoretical foundation for the implementation of Law No. 18/2019 in order to preserve local epistemic sovereignty.

  • How to cite

    [1]
    “Beyond the Traditional–Modern Binary: A Postcolonial Reading of Pesantren in Islamic Education Studies”, J. Pend. A. Isl. Ind, vol. 7, no. 5, pp. 319–328, Oct. 2026, doi: 10.37251/jpaii.v7i5.3833.

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