Problem Based Learning in Islamic Religious Education: The Case of the Indonesian Pesantren

Many researchers have applied PBL (Problem Based Learning) in various educational institutions and various scientific fields. However, not many of them use PBL in the field of religious education. This study attempts to describe the PBL model that has been applied in Indonesian pesantrens in Islamic religious education. Pesantrens are traditional Indonesian Islamic religious education institutions that emphasize Islamic religious education and character development. Three things are the focus of this research: the objectives of PBL in pesantrens, the design of PBL problems in pesantrens, and the PBL phase in pesantrens. This research was conducted using the case study method on one of the largest pesantren in Indonesia, the al-Anwar Pesantren, located in Karangmangu, Sarang, Rembang, Indonesia. Research results show that PBL in pesantrens had been implemented in the form of bahth al-masa’il (lit. problem discourse). Viewed from the aspect of purpose, pesantrens’ PBL places more emphasis on deepening the understanding of classical Islamic texts, while in the problem design, problems of PBL are not being designed by teachers, but are proposed and chosen instead by the students themselves. Meanwhile, in the phase aspect, pesantrens’ PBL gives more autonomy and responsibility to students to carry out the learning process independently.