Islamic Studies Teachers’ Perceptions of Using a Blended Approach for Teaching Islamic Education Modules in Primary Schools in Saudi Arabia

Abstract

This study examines Islamic studies teachers’ perception of the effectiveness of using a blended learning approach in teaching Islamic education modules in girls’ primary schools. Furthermore, it investigates participants’ perspectives on whether a blended approach is suitable for teaching all Islamic education modules or if only traditional methods are ideal for teaching some of them.
A mixed-methods approach was used for data collection in this study, including qualitative (lesson observations and interviews) and quantitative (online questionnaires) methods. In the data analysis phase, both a thematic analysis and a descriptive statistics analysis including factor analysis using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) was employed to facilitate the interpretation of quantitative data.
The blended approach was thought to be suitable to use in teaching all subjects of the Islamic education curriculum. However, the frequency of using such method depends on the content of the lesson and the subject that teachers want it to teach. Moreover, Islamic studies teachers believed that using a blended learning approach increased their productivity when preparing for their lessons and they believed that such methods helped them to achieve curriculum objectives. On the other hand, as a result of applying a blended approach teachers may face difficulty in completing the given unit in one lesson and teachers may experience difficulty in retaking control of the class, particularly after applying one of the active learning strategies. Also, using too many examples of active learning strategies may distract students. The study also revealed that the key factors which may encourage Islamic studies teachers to use a blended approach include the nature of the curriculum and teachers’ desire and hope of achieving curriculum objectives and the availability of the teaching aids related to each unit in a student’s textbook. Teacher workload, a lack of effective training and a lack of information and communication technology (ICT) tools together with Islamic studies teachers’ fear of undermining the respected status of the academic content were thought to be some of the key obstacles that may prohibit Islamic studies teachers from applying a blended learning approach.
This study provides Islamic studies teachers with a blended learning model, along with identification of some of its benefits to both teachers and students. Finally, the blended learning model may be considered a contribution to research in pedagogy, and future researchers may further develop or evaluate the effectiveness of the blended learning model for use in teaching other subjects.