Resistance of Shia Minority Students in Educational Institutions in Jember, East Java, Indonesia

Authors

  • Mochammad Zaka Ardiansyah Universitas Islam Negeri Kiai Haji Achmad Siddiq Jember, Indonesia
  • Akrimi Matswah University of Freiburg, Germany

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.69552/mumtaz.v6i1.3736

Keywords:

Islamic Religious Education, Resistance of Minority Students, Student Organizations, Islamic Religious Education Learning, Shia Minority Students

Abstract

Discrimination against religious minorities in educational institutions is a global issue that undermines the principles of a love-based curriculum and ecotheology promoted by the Ministry of Religious Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia. This article investigates the typology of resistance enacted by Shia minority students within Islamic Religious Education classes and youth organizations. Employing a retrospective narrative inquiry, the study explores the past experiences of five Shia minority students regarding their resistance in these educational settings at both school and university levels. To ensure research ethics and protect the confidentiality of individuals from marginalized minority groups, all participant identities and educational institution names are presented using pseudonyms. Participants were recruited through snowball sampling and interviewed using the life story interview method. Field data were analyzed using the resistance theories of Solorzano & Villalpando, Solorzano & Bernal, and McFarland, as well as thematic analysis techniques from Braun and Clarke. The findings indicate that Shia minority students engaged in three forms of resistance: covert, passive, and conformist. This article contributes new insights to the scholarship on Islamic Religious Education and expands understanding of Muslim minority students' resistance, including resistance within educational institutions.

References

Abbas, T., & McNeil-Willson, R. (2025). Resilience and resistance: How young Northwestern European Muslims confront pedagogical Islamophobia. Race Ethnicity and Education, 0(0), 1–26. https://doi.org/10.1080/13613324.2025.2599091

Alarabiat, A., Hujran, O., Al-Fraihat, D., & Aljaafreh, A. (2024). Understanding Students’ Resistance to Continue Using Online Learning. Education and Information Technologies, 29(5), 5421–5446. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639-023-12030-x

Ali, Z., & Mukherjee, U. (2022). “We are not equal citizens in any respect”: Citizenship education and the routinization of violence in the everyday lives of religious minority youth in Pakistan. Diaspora, Indigenous, and Minority Education, 16(4), 246–258. https://doi.org/10.1080/15595692.2022.2082405

Amrulloh, F. S., & Maarif, A. M. (2024). How CEFR is Implemented in Arabic Language Learning in Madrasah Schools. JALIE: Journal of Applied Linguistics and Islamic Education, 8(02), 345–362. https://doi.org/10.33754/jalie.v8i02.1442

Anderl, F. (2026). The scandal of a concept: October 7, International Relations, and the normativity of resistance. Critical Studies on Terrorism, 0(0), 1–25. https://doi.org/10.1080/17539153.2026.2645417

Ardiansyah, M. Z. (2022). The Mimicry of Shia Youths in Islamic ‎Education and Religious Space of Education ‎Institutions. Tadris: Jurnal Pendidikan Islam, 17(2), Article 2. https://doi.org/10.19105/tjpi.v17i2.7106

Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2009). Reflecting on reflexive thematic analysis. Qualitative Research in Sport, Exercise and Health, 11(4), 589–597.

Chenan, J. L., & Hammond, Q. (2022). Using Social Media to Recruit Participants for Scholarly Research: Lessons from African Female Immigrants in the United States. Journal of Criminal Justice Education, 33(4), 509–525.

Connelly, F. M., & Clandinin, D. J. (1990). Stories of Experience and Narrative Inquiry. Educational Researcher, 19(5), 2014.

Dh, A. Z., & Said, I. G. (2024). Textual argumentation of the Shia-Sunni Adhān: A call to defending sectarian craving for Islamic authority in Indonesia and Iran. Indonesian Journal of Islam and Muslim Societies, 14(1), 1–30. https://doi.org/10.18326/ijims.v14i1.1-30

Ebabuye, T., & Asgedom, A. (2024). Minority student’s agency: Resistance to inequality at multiethnic primary schools. Cogent Education, 11(1), 2351748. https://doi.org/10.1080/2331186X.2024.2351748

Gerrard, Y. (2021). What’s in a (pseudo)name? Ethical conundrums for the principles of anonymisation in social media research. Qualitative Research, 21(5), 686–702. https://doi.org/10.1177/1468794120922070

Gilliam, L. (2024). Averting, stepping-up or shielding: School strategies and intensive minority parenting among second-generation minority Danish parents. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 50(4), 792–810.

H01. (2022, July 1). Interview with H01 [Audio recording].

Hamid, S. (2012). Indonesian politics in 2012: Coalitions, accountability and the future of democracy. Bulletin of Indonesian Economic Studies, 48(3), 325–345. https://doi.org/10.1080/00074918.2012.728631

Heaton, J. (2021). “*Pseudonyms Are Used Throughout”: A Footnote, Unpacked. Qualitative Inquiry, 28(1), 123–132.

Itzik, L., & Walsh, S. D. (2023). Giving Them a Choice: Qualitative Research Participants Chosen Pseudonyms as a Reflection of Self-Identity. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 54(6–7), 705–721. https://doi.org/10.1177/00220221231193146

Jati, W., Syamsurijal, S., Halimatusa’diah, H., Aji, G., & Yilmaz, I. (2024). Reevaluating Approaches to Religious Moderation at the Grassroots Level: The Role of Muslim Youth in Advancing Interfaith Dialogue. Al-Jami’ah: Journal of Islamic Studies, 62(1), 185–213. https://doi.org/10.14421/ajis.2024.621.185-213

Lilja, M. (2022). The definition of resistance. Journal of Political Power, 15(2), 202–220. https://doi.org/10.1080/2158379X.2022.2061127

Mahmud, A. A. H., Dewi, S. V., & Yulianto, E. (2025). SWOT Analysis of Scientific Learning Implementation Strategies at MTs Nurul Iman, Cigalontang Islamic Boarding School. At-Ta’dib, 20(2), 247–265. https://doi.org/10.21111/at-tadib.v20i2.42

Marco-Bujosa, L. M., Galczyk, A., Stannard, R., Koetting, P., & Friedman, A. A. (2024). "Connecting the Dots” for Recruiting Secondary Science Teachers in Urban Schools: An Exploration of Career Choice for Undergraduate Science Majors. The Urban Review, 56(5), 648–671. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11256-024-00695-8

McFarland, D. A. (2001). Student Resistance: How the Formal and Informal Organization of Classrooms Facilitate Everyday Forms of Student Defiance. American Journal of Sociology, 107(3), 612–678. https://doi.org/10.1086/338779

McFarland, D. A. (2004). Resistance as a Social Drama: A Study of Change‐Oriented Encounters. American Journal of Sociology, 109(6), 1249–1318.

Miichi, K., & Kayane, Y. (2020). The Politics of Religious Pluralism in Indonesia: The Shi’a Response to the Sampang Incidents of 2011–12. TRaNS: Trans-Regional and -National Studies of Southeast Asia, 8(1), 51–64. https://doi.org/10.1017/trn.2019.12

Najamuddin, N., Ahmad, A. K., Sabara, S., Arafah, S., Aksa, A., & Tamrin, S. (2023). Resistance and Exclusion of the Shia Community in South Sulawesi. Migration Letters, 20(6), 118–125. https://doi.org/10.59670/ml.v20i6.3466

Nashir, M. J., Wardani, A., Apriliani, E. I., & Zahiri, M. (2025). HOTS-Based Learning Methodology Innovation in Islamic Religious Education: A Case Study at State Senior High School 1 Karanganyar. Jurnal Tarbiyatuna, 16(2), 235–256. https://doi.org/10.31603/tarbiyatuna.v16i2.14987

Pamungkas, C. (2015). Social Resilience of Minority Group: Study on Syiah Refugees in Sidoarjo and Ahmadiyah Refugees in Mataram. Ulumuna, 19(2), Article 2. https://doi.org/10.20414/ujis.v19i2.418

S01. (2022a, July 5). Interview with S01 [Audio recording].

S01. (2022b, July 15). Interview with S01 [Audio recording].

S02. (2022, July 15). Interview with S02 [Audio recording].

S03. (2022a, July 15). Interview with S03 [Audio recording].

S03. (2022b, July 16). Interview with S03 [Audio recording].

S04. (2022, July 21). Interview with S04 [Audio recording].

S05. (2022, July 21). Interview with S05 [Audio recording].

Scott, J. C. (1985). Weapons of the Weaks: Everyday Forms of Peasant Resistance. Yale University Press.

Scott, J. C. (1990). Domination and the arts of resistance: Hidden transcripts. Yale University Press.

Scott, J. C. (2000). Senjatanya Orang-orang yang Kalah: Bentuk Perlawanan Sehari-hari Kaum Petani. Yayasan Obor Indonesia.

Sheikh, M. P. (2024). Sites of Struggle as Sites of Learning: StudentActivism as Counter-Hegemonic Resistanceto the Neoliberal University in Pakistan. In T. Saeed, R. Iyengar, M. A. Witenstein, & E. J. Byker (Eds.), Exploring Education and Democratization in South Asia. Palgrave Macmillan.

Solorzano, D. G., & Bernal, D. D. (2001). Examining Transformational Resistance Through a Critical Race and Latcrit Theory Framework Chicana and Chicano Students in an Urban Context. Urban Education, 36(3), 308–342.

Solórzano, D. G., & Villalpando, O. (1998). Critical Race Theory, Marginality, and the Experience of Students of Color in Higher Education. In C. A. Torres & T. R. Mitchell (Eds.), Sociology of Education: Emerging Perspectives. State University of New York Press.

Umiarso, U., & Asnawan, A. (2022). Social Conflict Resolution Among Islamic Ideologies in Puger, Jember, East Java. Dialog, 45(1), 1–12. https://doi.org/10.47655/dialog.v45i1.576

United States Department of State. (2023). 2023 Report on International Religious Freedom: Indonesia. United States Department of State. https://www.state.gov/reports/2023-report-on-international-religious-freedom/indonesia/

Ytrearne, T. V., Hella, R. T., Hjetland, G. J., Skogen, J. C., & Langeland, E. (2026). “With all your friends in your pocket” – a qualitative study about adolescents’ experiences with social media from a health-promoting perspective. International Journal of Qualitative Studies on Health and Well-Being, 21(1), 2639536. https://doi.org/10.1080/17482631.2026.2639536

Zhang, M. (2022). “No! I Can’t!”: Noise and silence as everyday resistance at a Chinese suburban middle school. Ethnography, 23(1), 104–129. https://doi.org/10.1177/1466138120910169

Downloads

Published

2026-06-26

Issue

Section

Articles

How to Cite

Ardiansyah, M. Z., & Matswah, A. (2026). Resistance of Shia Minority Students in Educational Institutions in Jember, East Java, Indonesia. MUMTAZ : Jurnal Pendidikan Agama Islam, 6(1), 049-068. https://doi.org/10.69552/mumtaz.v6i1.3736

Similar Articles

21-30 of 93

You may also start an advanced similarity search for this article.