ABSTRACT
Isa Al Fatoni, 2026. The Role of Ma’had Al Kahfi in Shaping the Religious Character of Students at SMA Muhammadiyah 1 Ponorogo. Undergraduate Thesis (S-1), Islamic Religious Education Study Program, Faculty of Islamic Studies, Universitas Muhammadiyah Ponorogo. Supervisors: (I) Dr. Katni, M.Pd.I., (II) Devid Dwi Erwahyudin, M.Pd.
Keywords: Ma’had, Character Formation, Religious Character, Students
Developing students’ religious character in Indonesia is highly important in addressing the challenges of globalization and modernization, which may contribute to various negative behaviors and moral degradation, including among some students at SMA Muhammadiyah 1 Ponorogo. As the future generation of the nation, students need to be equipped with strong religious values so that they can face various challenges in life wisely and demonstrate noble character. Ma’had Al Kahfi was established as one of the efforts to address moral degradation by instilling and teaching religious character to students. Religious character is essential for students because it helps them develop strong faith, piety, and akhlakul karimah (noble character), enabling them to become a generation that achieves success in both worldly life and the hereafter. This study analyzes the strategies employed by the educators of Ma’had Al Kahfi to instill and develop students’ religious character through various learning and development activities, including Islamic religious studies and Qur’anic learning, worship practices, moral education, and other religious activities. The objectives of this study are to examine the strategies used by Ma’had Al Kahfi in instilling and developing students’ religious character, analyze its role in shaping students’ religious character, identify the challenges encountered in the process, and evaluate its impact on students’ religious character development. This study employed a qualitative approach. The researcher served as the primary research instrument, while data were collected through interviews, observations, and relevant documentation. Data were analyzed using the Miles, Huberman, and Saldaña model. The findings indicate that Ma’had Al Kahfi plays an important role in creating a religious environment, instilling Islamic values, and developing positive habits in accordance with religious teachings. In its implementation, several challenges were encountered, including limited parental involvement, the influence of social media, unsupportive peer and social environments, and limited numbers of educators and mentors. Nevertheless, the presence of Ma’had Al Kahfi has had positive impacts, including increased religious knowledge, the development of positive attitudes and behaviors, and improved students’ ability to manage their emotions and deal with various problems wisely. Therefore, Ma’had Al Kahfi serves as an effective educational setting for supporting the development of students’ religious character.