The Ta'dzim Tradition as a Form of Hidden Curriculum in Students' Character Formation at Al Hikmah Bahrul Ulum Islamic Boarding School, Tambakberas, Jombang

Abstract

The tradition of ta’dzim represents a deeply embedded social practice in pesantren life and serves as a form of value education that extends beyond formal instruction. This study analyzes ta’dzim as a form of hidden curriculum in students' character formation at Al Hikmah Bahrul Ulum Islamic Boarding School, Tambakberas, Jombang. The study employed a qualitative approach with a case study design. Data were collected through in-depth interviews, observation, and documentation involving seven informants, including the pesantren leader, teachers, senior students, and newly enrolled students. Data were analyzed through coding, thematic categorization, and triangulation across sources and data-collection techniques. The findings reveal three main themes. First, ta’dzim is manifested in everyday practices, including lowering one’s head and pausing when teachers or caregivers pass by, maintaining respectful interactions with teachers and caregivers, and treating books and religious texts with reverence as an expression of respect for knowledge. Second, ta’dzim is learned, habituated, and reproduced through observation, imitation, teacher and senior-student role modeling, guidance, mentoring, and repeated participation in everyday pesantren life. Third, these practices function as a form of hidden curriculum because values are transmitted not only through explicit instruction but also through routines, social relationships, institutional culture, and unwritten expectations. From Bourdieu’s perspective, repeated participation in ta’dzim practices may contribute to the formation of relatively enduring dispositions, although the process varies according to students’ prior experiences and adaptation to pesantren culture. This study contributes to non-formal education by demonstrating how character and values are cultivated through sustained social and cultural experiences within everyday pesantren life.