Negotiating Digital Innovation and Pesantren Traditions: Teachers’, Administrators’, and Students’ Experiences of Digital Transformation in Islamic Religious Education Menegosiasikan Inovasi Digital dan Tradisi Pesantren: Pengalaman Guru, Pengelola, dan Santri dalam Transformasi Digital Pendidikan Agama Islam

Abstract

Transformasi digital di pondok pesantren bukan tentang memperkenalkan perangkat teknologi atau memindahkan pembelajaran ke platform online, melainkan negosiasi antara peluang teknologi, pengetahuan agama, otoritas guru, pedagogi tatap muka, dan nilai-nilai institusi. Makalah ini mengkaji pengalaman dan proses negosiasi pembelajaran PAI di sebuah pondok pesantren di Indonesia menggunakan desain studi kasus kualitatif (18 informan yang dipilih secara purposif: enam guru PAI, dua manajer pendidikan, dan 10 siswa). Data dikumpulkan melalui wawancara semi-terstruktur, delapan sesi observasi kelas non-partisipan, dan analisis dokumen pembelajaran institusi; dianalisis secara tematik menggunakan familiarisasi data, pengkodean awal, pengembangan kategori, dan interpretasi lintas sumber. Temuan diorganisir menjadi empat dimensi analitis yang saling terkait: adopsi teknologi digital, adaptasi pedagogis, mediasi guru, dan negosiasi berbasis nilai. Presentasi, materi audiovisual, dan smartphone memperluas akses ke materi pembelajaran dan mendiversifikasi aktivitas pembelajaran tetapi tidak menggantikan penjelasan langsung, diskusi, interaksi guru-siswa, dan praktik pembelajaran yang ada. Guru memediasi informasi agama digital dengan seleksi, pemeriksaan, penjelasan, dan kontekstualisasi sumber. Informan juga menyebutkan gangguan, kredibilitas informasi online, kompetensi digital guru, dan waktu persiapan tambahan. Penelitian ini menjelaskan transformasi digital sebagai negosiasi kontekstual (bukan pergeseran linear dari pembelajaran tradisional ke digital). Penelitian ini menawarkan lensa analitis empat dimensi untuk memahami interaksi antara penggunaan teknologi, keputusan pedagogis, mediasi pengetahuan keagamaan, dan nilai kelembagaan pesantren. Kerangka ini bersifat interpretatif dan berakar pada satu kasus sehingga perlu dikaji lebih lanjut dalam konteks kelembagaan yang berbeda.

The rapid expansion of digital technology has transformed educational practices, including Islamic Religious Education (IRE) in Islamic boarding schools. However, the integration of technology into pesantren education presents a particular challenge because technological innovation must be negotiated with established pedagogical practices and religious values. This study aims to examine how technology-driven transformation occurs in IRE at Pondok Pesantren Al-Kifyah Riaty and how teachers and students negotiate the relationship between digital innovation and traditional Islamic educational practices. A qualitative case study was employed involving 18 participants, consisting of six IRE teachers, two educational administrators, and ten students. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews, classroom observations, and analysis of relevant institutional documents and were analyzed thematically through data reduction, coding, categorization, and cross-source triangulation. The findings reveal four interconnected dimensions of digital transformation: digital adoption, pedagogical adaptation, teacher mediation, and value-based negotiation. Digital technologies expanded access to learning resources, diversified teaching strategies, and supported student engagement; however, technology did not replace direct instruction, teacher–student interaction, or traditional Islamic learning practices. Teachers increasingly acted as selectors, evaluators, and mediators of digital religious information, while challenges emerged concerning teachers’ digital competence, student distraction, information credibility, and additional preparation time. The study contributes a context-sensitive understanding of digital transformation in Islamic education by demonstrating that meaningful digitalization in pesantren is not a linear transition from traditional to digital learning, but a negotiated process in which technological innovation is integrated with pedagogical, cultural, and religious values.