Pedagogical Mediation of Religious Authority in Islamic Education: Supporting Learners with Diverse Epistemic Readiness in Malaysian Fiqh Classrooms

Abstract

Background: Religious education requires teachers to balance authoritative disciplinary knowledge with learners’ diverse cognitive, linguistic, and epistemic readiness. Although taqlid has been extensively discussed in Islamic jurisprudence, limited empirical research has examined how religious authority is pedagogically mediated for learners with different capacities to engage with legal evidence and juristic reasoning. Objective: This study investigated how Islamic Education teachers conceptualised and adapted the pedagogical use of taqlid in Malaysian fiqh classrooms. Method: An exploratory qualitative design involved eight experienced Islamic Education teachers in Terengganu, Malaysia, selected through purposive sampling. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews and analysed thematically. Results: Four themes emerged: legitimate reliance under limited epistemic readiness; instructional adaptation and protection from misinterpretation; balancing stability with learner dependency; and progression towards informed religious engagement.

Teachers used recognised religious authority as an adaptive pedagogical scaffold rather than as unconditional obedience. Conclusion: Pedagogical mediation can transform reliance on religious authority into developmentally responsive support. The study proposes the Adaptive Pedagogical Mediation of Religious Authority (APMRA) as a conceptual framework integrating inclusive education, adaptive pedagogy, instructional scaffolding, and Islamic epistemology.