Roots of the dichotomy of Islamic education

Abstract

Education in the modern era is undergoing a very rapid development as a result of an increasingly unstoppable current of globalization. In the context of Islamic education, there is a significant dichotomy between religious education and general education. This research aims to trace the roots of the dichotomy of Islamic education and find solutions to unify the two areas of education.
The research method used is the library study, in which the author studies literature and writings related to the focus of the problem being studied. The results of the research show that this dichotomy is caused by three main factors: the very rapid development of science and specialization of science, the historical factors of the development of the Muslims, and the internal factors of Islamic educational institutions that are unable to carry out reforms.

The first factor was the very rapid development of science, which led to the emergence of various branches of science. This specialization makes experts focus only on their own fields and tend to close themselves to other sciences, especially those related to Islam. The second factor is the historical factor, in which, since the time of Islamic decline, religious science has been regarded as a fardhu ain (individual obligation), while general science is considered a Fardhu kifayah (collective obligation). The third factor is an internal factor in Islamic educational institutions that are faced with a variety of complex problems, such as economic, political, social, and cultural.

The conclusion of this study is that Islamic education should not separate between the science of religion and general science. The two fields of science should complement each other and be based on the teachings of Islam, which emphasizes that all science is rooted in religion. Thus, it is necessary to rehabilitate and reform the education of Islam to unite these two areas of science for the advancement of Islam as a whole.