Exploring Arabic Language Learning Practices in a Remote Arab Village: An Ethnographic Study of Islamic Boarding School Students

Muhammad Zaki Mubarak; Uril Bahruddin; Abdul Aziz

doi:10.31000/btavyy70

Authors

Muhammad Zaki Mubarak Universitas Islam Negeri Maulana Malik Ibrahim
Uril Bahruddin Universitas Islam Negeri Maulana Malik Ibrahim
Abdul Aziz Universitas Islam Negeri Maulana Malik Ibrahim

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.31000/btavyy70

Keywords:

Arabic language, arabic learning, learning practices, ethnography, Islamic boarding school

Abstract

Arabic language learning in Islamic boarding schools develops not only through formal instruction but also through repeated practices embedded in students’ everyday lives. This study explores how Arabic language learning practices are manifested among students at Darussalam Islamic Boarding School in the remote Arab Village of Parmeraan, North Padang Lawas, Indonesia. Using an interpretive qualitative approach with an ethnographic design, data were generated through participant observation, ethnographic interviews, and documentation. Six students representing Grades 7, 8, and 9 served as primary informants, supported by Ustadz Bustaman (the school leader), an Arabic teacher, and the language-program coordinator. Data were analyzed inductively through Spradley’s domain, taxonomic, componential, and cultural-theme procedures. The findings reveal three interconnected patterns. Students processed Arabic through note-taking, reviewing, imitation, rewriting, and memorization through repetition; organized learning through discipline, continuity, and self-monitoring; and learned socially through consideration for peers, collaborative learning, self-confidence, respect for teachers, and humility in seeking knowledge. These recurring practices formed relatively stabilized learning patterns through repeated participation in a consistent educational ecology, rather than remaining isolated or purely situational learning actions. Respect for teachers and humility also provide a context-sensitive interpretation of the social-affective domain within this Islamic educational setting. These findings imply that Arabic pedagogy should cultivate repeatable learning routines and relational conditions that allow productive practices to develop into sustainable learning patterns.

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