Ibn Khaldun’s Educational Epistemology and Its Theoretical Implications for Contemporary Islamic Education
Kata Kunci:
Ibn Khaldun, educational epistemology, Islamic education, malakah, tadarrujAbstrak
This article examines Ibn Khaldun’s educational epistemology and its theoretical implications for contemporary Islamic education. Drawing primarily on Ibn Khaldun’s al-Muqaddimah, the study conceptualizes education as an epistemic process that is gradual, contextual, and oriented toward the formation of intellectual and moral dispositions. Employing a qualitative research design based on Paul Ricoeur’s hermeneutical approach, the study reconstructs key epistemological concepts in Ibn Khaldun’s educational thought, including tadarruj (gradual instruction), malakah (the formation of intellectual capacity), the integration of reason, experience, and revelation, as well as the social and ethical foundations of knowledge. The analysis demonstrates that Ibn Khaldun’s epistemology provides a coherent theoretical framework for addressing major challenges faced by contemporary Islamic education, such as the dichotomy between religious and secular knowledge, curricular fragmentation, and the dominance of instrumental and utilitarian educational paradigms. From Ibn Khaldun’s perspective, education is not merely the transmission of information, but a civilizational project aimed at cultivating knowledgeable, ethical, and socially responsible individuals. Therefore, Ibn Khaldun’s educational epistemology offers strong theoretical relevance as a conceptual foundation for reconstructing contemporary Islamic education in an integrative, ethical, and context-sensitive manner.
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