Reconstructing Curriculum Epistemology through the Tawhidic Worldview: A Conceptual Framework Based on Syed Muhammad Naquib al-Attas
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15575/ijik.v16i1.54317Keywords:
Tawhidic worldview, curriculum design, epistemology, Syed Muhammad Naquib al-Attas, Islamic educationAbstract
This study aims to reconstruct the epistemological foundation of curriculum design through the tawhidic worldview based on the thought of Syed Muhammad Naquib al-Attas. The study is grounded in the argument that the crisis of contemporary education is not merely pedagogical but fundamentally epistemological, reflected in the dominance of secular and fragmented paradigms that separate knowledge from ethical, spiritual, and metaphysical foundations. Using a qualitative approach through a literature review method, this study analyzes primary and secondary sources related to tawhidic worldview, Islamic epistemology, curriculum theory, and contemporary discourses on knowledge integration. The analysis is conducted through conceptual and epistemological reconstruction to identify the foundational structure of knowledge within the tawhidic framework and its implications for curriculum development. The findings reveal that the tawhidic worldview offers an integrated epistemological system grounded in the unity of reality (tawhid), the integration of revelation (naql), reason (‘aql), and spiritual intuition (dhawq), as well as the centrality of adab as the ultimate aim of education. Based on these findings, the study proposes a Tawhidic Curriculum Model consisting of interconnected ontological, epistemological, and axiological dimensions that collectively shape curriculum structure, pedagogy, assessment, and educational outcomes. The model emphasizes vertical, horizontal, and transcendental integration to overcome the dichotomy between religious and modern sciences while fostering holistic human development (insan kamil). This study contributes theoretically by extending al-Attas’s concept of ta’dib into a more systematic and operational framework for curriculum reconstruction and contributes practically by offering a conceptual direction for developing integrative, value-oriented, and transformative Islamic education in contemporary contexts.
References
Abdullah, A., Zaqiah, Q. Y., Ridwan, M., Hisniati, S. B., Mahmud, & Erihardiana, M. (2024). Reactualization Islamic Theology in Education: Designing Curriculum, Method Learning, and Technology Integration for Transformation Educative. Britain International of Linguistics, Arts and Education Sciences Journal, 6(1), 24–32. https://doi.org/10.33258/biolae.v6i1.1079
Ahmed, F. (2018). An exploration of Naquib al-Attas’ theory of Islamic education as ta’dīb as an ‘indigenous’ educational philosophy. Educational Philosophy and Theory, 50(8), 786–794. https://doi.org/10.1080/00131857.2016.1247685
Aktan, S. (2018). Islamic Civilization and Its Classical Curriculum Theory: The Philosophy, Institutions and Important Theoreticians of Classical Curriculum Theory. In Curriculum Studies Worldwide (pp. 1–43). Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-53538-2_1
Al-Attas, S. M. N. (1980). The Concept of Education in Islam: A Framework for an Islamic Philosophy of Education. Muslim Youth Movement of Malaysia (ABIM).
Al-Attas, S. M. N. (1993). Islamic and Secularism. International Institute of Islamic Thought and Civilization (lSTAC).
Al-Attas, S. M. N. (1995a). Prolegomena to the Metaphysics of Islām: An Exposition of the Fundamental Elements of the Worldview of Islām (2nd ed.). International Institute of Islamic Thought and Civilization.
Al-Attas, S. M. N. (1995b). Prolegomena To The Metaphysics Of Islam An Exposition Of The Fundamental Elements Of The Worldview of Islam. Perpustakaan Negara Malaysia.
Alam, M. (2020). A collaborative action in the implementation of moderate islamic education to counter radicalism. International Journal of Innovation, Creativity and Change, 11(7), 497 – 516.
Alazmi, A. A., & Bush, T. (2024). An Islamic-oriented educational leadership model: towards a new theory of school leadership in Muslim societies. Journal of Educational Administration and History, 56(3), 312 – 334. https://doi.org/10.1080/00220620.2023.2292573
Alkouatli, C. (2022). Sound Pedagogies and Mispedagogies in Teaching Islam: Learning from Canadian Muslim Educators. In Supporting Modern Teaching in Islamic Schools: Pedagogical Best Practice for Teachers. Taylor and Francis. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003193432-2
Alsuhaymi, A. O., & Atallah, F. A. (2025). Reason and Revelation in Ibn Taymiyyah’s Critique of Philosophical Theology: A Contribution to Contemporary Islamic Philosophy of Religion. Religions, 16(7). https://doi.org/10.3390/rel16070809
Andri Nirwana, A. N., Elbanna, M., Ismail, F. H., Daud, Z., Mohd Salleh, N., Bin Kirin, A., Marisa, S. N., & Husein, M. Z. (2024). PRISMA-Based Study on Integrating Islamic Principles into Legal Systems: Human Rights in Egypt and Indonesia. International Journal of Law and Society, 3(3), 173–186. https://doi.org/10.59683/ijls.v3i3.90
Apple, M. W. (2004). Ideology and Curriculum (3rd Editio). https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203487563
Arake, L., Keri, I., & Hanafi, S. (2021). The Radicalism Prevention Policy in State Islamic Religious Universities in South Sulawesi: An Overview of Maqasid Syari'ah. Jurnal Ilmiah Al-Syir'ah, 19(1), 71-90.
Arif, M. Z. (2019). Integration of Islamic Values in Learning. Istawa : Jurnal Pendidikan Islam, 4(2), 132–143. https://doi.org/10.24269/ijpi.v4i2.2067
Azid, T., Kayani, Z., Rawashdeh, O. H., & Shirazi, N. S. (2021). Learning and teaching of Islamic economics: conventional approach or Tawhidi methodology. International Journal of Ethics and Systems, 37(2), 281 – 300. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJOES-12-2019-0191
Boyle, H. N. (2019). Registered Medersas in Mali: Effectively Integrating Islamic and Western Educational Epistemologies in Practice. Comparative Education Review, 63(2), 145–165. https://doi.org/10.1086/702592
Brahim, A. H., Siti Norainna, P. H., & Faten Nazurah, D. N. (2022). Tawhidic worldview and islamic aesthetics in the art of bruneian tenun (woven textile). In Routledge Handbook of Contemporary Brunei. Taylor and Francis. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003020431-25
Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2021). Thematic Analysis: A Practical Guide. SAGE.
Choudhury, M. A. (2018). Tawhidi Islamic economics in reference to the methodology arising from the Qurʾān and the Sunnah. ISRA International Journal of Islamic Finance, 10(2), 263–276. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJIF-02-2018-0025
Choudhury, M. A. (2021). The Tawhidi Methodology with Implications on Islamic Economics as an Embedded Socio-scientific System: Contra-Islamic Neoclassical Reasoning. In God-Conscious Organization and the Islamic Social Economy. Taylor and Francis. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315585321-12
Choudhury, M. A. (2023). The Tawhidi Methodological Worldview as A Model of Circular Political Economy. Journal of Economics & Management Research, 4(2), 1–9. https://doi.org/10.47363/JESMR/2023(4)176
Choudhury, M. A., Azid, T., & Klasra, M. A. (2006). Knowledge-induced technological change: A study involving the automobile innovation in Malaysia with layers of techniques. International Journal of Social Economics, 33(11), 744 – 765. https://doi.org/10.1108/03068290610705661
El-Mubarak, A., & Hassan, I. (2021). Challenges of Islamic Education in the Era of Globalization: A Proposed Holistic Solution. International Journal of Academic. https://doi.org/https://ssrn.com/abstract=3917906
Gadamer, H.-G. (2004). TRUTH AND METHOD (Second, Re). continuum.
Gert J. J. Biesta. (2011). Good Education in an Age of Measurement Ethics, Politics, Democracy. Routledge.
Hanif, A., Ma’mur, I., & Gunawan, A. (2024). From tafaqquh fiddin to applied sciences: The transformation of Islamic education in Indonesia. Khazanah Pendidikan Islam, 6(3), 157–176. https://doi.org/10.15575/kpi.v6i3.41500
Hashemi, N. (2009). Islam, secularism, and liberal democracy: Toward a democratic theory for Muslim societies.
Hashim, R. (2005). Rethinking Islamic education in facing the challenges of the twenty-first century. American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences.
Herlambang, S., Rizqina, A. L., Ridwansyah, R., Muslih, M., & Naffati, A. K. (2024). Ḥusn Al-Jawāb ‘an Ithbāt al-Ahillah Bi al-Ḥisāb: Basyūnī ‘Imrān’s Method for Standardising the Determination of the Qamariyah Month in the Sultanate of Sambas (1913-1976). Journal of Islamic Law, 5(2), 222-241.
Husna, A., Mahfuds, Y., Uthman, Y. O. O.-O., & Aprilianto, A. (2023). Building A Muslim Worldview Through Islamic Education in The Middle of Globalization. Nazhruna: Jurnal Pendidikan Islam, 6(1), 46–59. https://doi.org/10.31538/nzh.v6i1.2622
Hussain, S. A. (2015). Teaching tawhid unity through diversity. In Comparative Theology in the Millennial Classroom: Hybrid Identities, Negotiated Boundaries. Taylor and Francis. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315718279-8
Junaedi, Syafi’i, I., Hasyim, F., & Jawid Marwat, M. (2025). Transformational Curriculum Model through Interpretation Epistemology; Islamic Boarding School Curriculum Management Perspective. Munaddhomah, 6(3), 387 – 403. https://doi.org/10.31538/munaddhomah.v6i3.1802
Junevicius, A., Juneviciene, O., Cepeliauskaite, Gabriele, & Daugeliene, R. (2021). Development and implementation of integrated curriculum in management studies. European Journal of Contemporary Education, 10(2), 375–394. https://doi.org/10.13187/ejced.2021.2.375
Karwadi, Bin Zakaria, A. R., Setiyawan, A., & Ferdi Hasan, M. (2025). Integration of critical pedagogy in Islamic education: a case study of pre-service teacher training. British Journal of Religious Education. https://doi.org/10.1080/01416200.2025.2560905
Khasawneh, O., Mostafa, I. I., & Rawagah, H. G. (2022). Educational Philosophical Thought and Implication of Abu Hamid Al-Ghazali: An Islamic Teacher Education Perspective. The International Journal of Religion and Spirituality in Society, 12(1), 115. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.18848/2154-8633/CGP/v12i01/115-132
Lafrarchi, N. (2020). Assessing Islamic religious education curriculum in Flemish public secondary schools. Religions, 11(3), 1–29. https://doi.org/10.3390/rel11030110
Lahmar, F. (2020). Islamic Education: An Islamic “Wisdom-Based Cultural Environment” in a Western Context. Religions, 11(8), Article 409. https://doi.org/10.3390/rel11080409
Maknunah, A., & Muis, A. (2023). Implementation of Islamic Religious Education learning in an independent curriculum perspective. Jurnal Pendidikan Islam Indonesia.
Masturin, M., Ritonga, M. R., & Amaroh, S. (2022). Tawhid-based green learning in Islamic higher education: An insan kamil character building. QIJIS: Qudus International Journal of Islamic Studies, 10(1), 215–252. https://doi.org/doi.org/10.21043/qijis.v10i1.14124
Mohamed, A. A., Rozaq, M. A., Ndow, M., & Rab, M. (2025). Adab as the epistemological foundation of Islamic education: A study of Syed Naquib al-Attas. Journal of World Thinkers, 2(2), 83–98. https://journal.walideminstitute.com/index.php/jwt/article/view/503
Moslimany, R., Otaibi, A., & Shaikh, F. (2024). Designing a holistic curriculum: Challenges and opportunities in islamic education. Journal on Islamic Studies. https://doi.org/10.35335/beztg009
Muassomah, M., Yaacob, S. E., Khairiah, K., Yurisa, P. R., & Demina, D. (2025). Participatory-based character education: Indonesian school children’s experiences. Jurnal Ilmiah Peuradeun, 13(3), 1615-1642.
Muchlasin, M. Y., Pratama, G. P., & Alim, A. (2021). Strengthening The Character Education Based On Syed M. Naquib Al-Attas (A Case Of Study Of Al-Ishlah Cibinong Junior High School). Islamic Management: Jurnal Manajemen Pendidikan Islam, 4(1). https://doi.org/10.30868/im.v4i01.923
Muliati, Hannani, Ilham, M., Anwar, K., & Jadi, S. Al. (2025). Dialectics of Theology and Ecology in Ammatoa ri Kajang in Bulukumba, Indonesia: Paradigm of Tawhidic and Environmental Fiqh in Sulapa Appa. Samarah, 9(1), 374 – 393. https://doi.org/10.22373/sjhk.v9i1.28242
Nasrudin, M., Sodiqin, A., & Mujib, A. (2025). Towards an Integrated Legal Studies Department in Indonesia: Transdisciplinary Framework for Legal Higher Education. Volksgeist: Jurnal Ilmu Hukurn dan Konstitusi, 8(2), 363.
Nurhadi, & Lubis, Z. B. (2019). The Concept of Tauhideducation Value (Aqidah)In National Education System Perspective. Al-Ishlah: Jurnal Pendidikan, 11(2), 141–158. https://doi.org/10.35445/alishlah.v11i2.101
Nurhidayati, & Adriyanto, A. T. (2022). The Role of Tawhidic Paradigm in Knowledge Creation Process. Lecture Notes in Networks and Systems, 497 LNNS, 337 – 347. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-08812-4_32
Rahmat, M., & Yahya, M. W. B. H. M. (2022). The Impact of Inclusive Islamic Education Teaching Materials Model on Religious Tolerance of Indonesian Students. International Journal of Instruction, 15(1), 347 – 364. https://doi.org/10.29333/iji.2022.15120a
Rassool, G. H. (2020). Cognitive Restructuring of Psychology: The Case for a Vertical and Horizontaḥ Integrated, Embedded Curriculum Model for Islamic Psychology. Islamic Studies, 59(4), 477 – 494.
Rassool, G. H. (2023). Islamic Psychology (1 st Editi). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003312956
Ruhullah, M. E., & Ushama, T. (2024). Tawhidic Leadership in the Modern World: Bridging Islamic Governance with Universal Values for Peace and Integrity. Al-Shajarah, 29(2), 329 – 364.
Ruth, R., & Janowitch, L. (2014). Pedagogy of the Oppressed BT - Encyclopedia of Critical Psychology (T. Teo (ed.); pp. 1342–1346). Springer New York. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-5583-7_610
Saffari, S. (2023). Tawhid paradigm and an inclusive concept of liberative struggle. Religions, 14(9), Article 1088. https://doi.org/10.3390/rel14091088
Sassi, K. (2020). Principles Of Islamic Education Epistemology Tauhid Paradigm (Analysis Of Thinking Of Naquib Al-Attas). Millah: Journal of Religious Studies, 20(1), 135–172. https://doi.org/10.20885/millah.vol20.iss1.art6
Sassi, K. (2021). Principles of Islamic Education Epistemology Tauhid Paradigm (Analysis of Thinking of Naquib Al-Attas). International Journal of Elementary Education, 10(3), 68–78. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijeedu.20211003.14
Shamsaei, M., & Shah, M. H. (2022). Recognizing the Position and Validity of Science in Understanding Religion: The Perspectives of Syed Muhammad Naquib Al-Attas and Pervez Amirali Hoodbhoy. Dinamika Ilmu, 22(1), 73–89. https://doi.org/10.21093/di.v22i1.4357
Shuhufi, M., & Purkon, A. (2023). Harmonization of Islamic law and local culture: A study of Indonesian Sundanese ethnic culture. Jurnal Ilmiah Al-Syir'ah, 21(1), 138-153.
Siregar, H. S., Nurhamzah, N., Munir, M., & Fikri, M. (2025). Enhancing Islamic education through technology integration: A study of teaching practices in Indonesia. Jurnal Ilmiah Peuradeun, 13(2), 959-986.
Slamet, M. U. A. (2025). The method of moral education of Al-Khatîb Al-Baghdâdî (D. 463 H) and its relevance to Islamic education in Indonesia. Khazanah Pendidikan Islam, 7(2), 164–182. https://doi.org/10.15575/kp.v7i2.48039
Snyder, H. (2019). Literature review as a research methodology: An overview and guidelines. Journal of Business Research, 104(March), 333–339. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2019.07.039
Susilawati, S., Supriyatno, T., Yasin, A. F., Tasir, Z., Asmawati, R. I., Chakim, A., & Dalle, A. (2026). Integrating computational thinking and spirituality in developing students’ critical thinking: A comparative study of Indonesia and Malaysia. Jurnal Ilmiah Peuradeun, 14(1), 413-438.
Syukri, M., Neliwati, & Lubis, Q. (2023). The Implementation Integrating Science and Religion in Curriculum Implementation at State Islamic University in North Sumatra. Al-Ishlah: Jurnal Pendidikan, 15(4), 4684–4695. https://doi.org/10.35445/alishlah.v15i4.3590
Tolchah, M., & Mu’ammar, M. A. (2019). Islamic education in the globalization era. Humanities &Social Sciences …. http://repository.uinsa.ac.id/id/eprint/1762/
Traore, A. (2019). The Dead Weight That Is Hindering the Islamisation of Knowledge. Islamic Studies, 58(2), 205 – 218.
Wilkinson, T. R. (2021a). Divine Unity and Human Plurality in Turkish Muslim Thought. Philosophy and Politics - Critical Explorations, 16, 171 – 188. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-66089-5_10
Xiao, Y., & Watson, M. (2017). Guidance on conducting a systematic literature review. Planning Education and Research, 39(1), 93–112. https://doi.org/doi.org/10.1177/0739456X17723971
Zainuddin, Amrullah, A. M. K., & Zuhriyah, I. A. (2025). The Challenges of Developing Islamic Education Curriculum and Strategies for Its Development in Facing Future Competency Demands. Tafkir: Interdisciplinary Journal of Islamic Education, 6(1), 111–126. https://doi.org/10.31538/tijie.v6i1.1316
Zakariya, D. M. (2019). Curriculum Implementation Integral Education Based on Tauhid (Case Study of Curriculum Implementation in SMA Luqman Al Hakim Surabaya). Studia Religia: Jurnal Pemikiran Dan Pendidikan Islam, 3(1), 1–7. https://doi.org/10.30651/sr.v3i1.2937
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Meli Fauziah; Aan Hasanah, Tedi Priatna, Qiqi Yuliati Zakiyah
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
-
Authors retain copyright and grant the journal the right of first publication. The work is simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution–ShareAlike 4.0 International License (CC BY-SA 4.0), which permits others to share and adapt the work, provided that proper credit is given to the authors and the original publication in this journal is acknowledged.
-
Authors may enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal’s published version of the work (for example, posting it in an institutional repository or publishing it in a book), provided that the original publication in this journal is properly acknowledged.
-
Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (for example, in institutional repositories or on their personal websites) prior to and during the submission process, as this practice can lead to productive scholarly exchange as well as earlier and increased citation of the published work (see The Effect of Open Access).