Arab Educational Information Network

The present study aims to reveal the level of alignment of the Islamic education curriculum content implemented in the year 2018/2019 in the intermediate stage in Saudi Arabia, with the national Islamic education standards for the branches of (monotheism, doctrine & hadith) and make recommendations for improving the Islamic education curricula. To this end, a descriptive content analysis method was used, and 9 content analysis cards of the Islamic education’s textbooks were designed. Each form included a list of the learning outcomes based on the Islamic education standards for each branch. Moreover, the validity and reliability of the research tools were verified, and the content of the targeted textbooks was analyzed accordingly. The study results showed that the degree of alignment of the Islamic education curriculum content implemented in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in the intermediate stage with the national Islamic education standards is generally medium, with an arithmetic mean of (x-2.04) and a percentage of (68%). The results showed that, of all branches of Islamic education, “monotheism” was the most aligned branch whose standards were achieved at a high level, with an arithmetic mean of (x-2.32) and a percentage of (77.3%), followed by “hadith” whose standards were achieved at a medium level, with an arithmetic mean of (x-2.09) and a percentage of (69.7%), while the branch of “doctrine” which was the least aligned branch whose standards were achieved at a medium level, with an arithmetic mean of (x- 1.70) and a percentage of (56.7%). The study concludes with suggestions and recommendations to bridge the gap between the textbooks implemented in the kingdom and the national standards of the Islamic education curricula. (Published abstract)