IMPLEMENTASI KURIKULUM MERDEKA PADA MATA PELAJARAN PENDIDIKAN AGAMA ISLAM

Abstract

The implementation of the Merdeka Curriculum in Islamic Religious Education (IRE) has become a strategic issue in strengthening adaptive, contextual, and character-oriented learning. This study aims to analyze in depth the planning, implementation, and evaluation of the Merdeka Curriculum in Islamic Religious Education learning at SMP Negeri 2 Sekampung, East Lampung. The study employed a qualitative approach with a phenomenological design. Data were collected through in-depth interviews, observations, and documentation. The data were analyzed using thematic analysis to identify key patterns and themes in curriculum implementation. The findings indicate that lesson planning was systematically developed through teaching modules based on contextual learning outcomes. The implementation of learning reflected a flexible, interactive, and differentiated approach, although conventional teaching methods were still observed in certain situations. Learning evaluation was conducted comprehensively by assessing cognitive, affective, and psychomotor domains and was utilized as a basis for improving the learning process, although its reflective function still requires further optimization. The findings confirm that the successful implementation of the Merdeka Curriculum is influenced by teachers' readiness, managerial support, and the effectiveness of the evaluation system. The study concludes that the implementation of the Merdeka Curriculum in Islamic Religious Education has been carried out satisfactorily; however, further strengthening of teachers' competencies, instructional innovation, and optimization of learning evaluation is needed to continuously improve the quality of education.