Pesantren are the oldest Islamic educational institutions and have become part of national education. Pesantren have contributed greatly to the growth and development of the Nusantara Islam and at the same time the growth of other Islamic institutions in Indonesia. Pesantren's education holds distinctive characters including religius characters and independent characters. This research was conducted at Manarul Huda Cottage, located in Bandung. This study aims to find out how Pesantren instill religious character and independent character in their santri. The researcher used a descriptive qualitative method to identify character education in the Manarul Huda Islamic Boarding School. The results of the study show that the Manarul Huda Islamic boarding school instills religius character through daily activities and independent character implanted through entrepreneurial activities.

One curriculum policy in countries, including Indonesia, is to provide students with higher-order thinking skills (HOTS) to meet the challenges of the 21st century, and success in doing so is closely related to the competence of teachers in integrating HOTS in the learning process. This study investigated HOTS implementation in Islamic Education (PAI) in primary schools in Indonesia. This study employed a case study design involving 58 PAI teachers in primary schools from several West Java, Indonesia regencies. The data were collected by distributing questionnaires with short answers followed by semi-structured interviews of 10 participants. Inductive and thematic data analysis was carried out to identify, evaluate, and create themes expressed by participants with the assistance of NVivo 12. Triangulation and expert review methods were used for instrument and data validation. This study explored five findings: teacher understanding, teaching resource support, instructional strategies, and student knowledge levels. This research contributes to improving the quality of PAI learning in HOTS-oriented primary schools, and policymakers can use its findings in determining the direction of the HOTS-based PAI curriculum. Policymakers should stress the importance of increasing teacher competence in mastering the HOTS concept comprehensively in planning, implementation, and evaluation. Support from various parties in optimizing HOTS-oriented PAI learning is a necessity for teachers.

Abstrak: Toleransi merupakan modal utama dalam membangun harmoni antarumat beragama, terutama di Indonesia. Penelitian ini dilakukan untuk mengetahui bagaimana penerapan karakter toleransi beragama dalam kehidupan masyarakat Cigugur yang pluralis. Penelitian di lakukan di Desa Cisantana dan Desa Cigugur, Kecamatan Cigugur, Kabupaten Kuningan, Jawa Barat. Pengumpulan data dalam penelitian ini menggunakan teknik observasi dan wawancara. Analisis data dilakukan dengan teknik analisis deskriptif kualitatif. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa masyarakat Cigugur yang memiliki keberagaman dalam memeluk agama dapat hidup berdampingan secara damai. Adapun faktor pemersatu masyarakat Cigugur yaitu adanya saling menghargai karena memiliki ikatan darah yang kuat. Selain itu, pemimpin masing-masing agama dan aliran kepercayaan sangat berperan dalam terbentuknya toleransi beragama. Hari Raya Idul Fitri, Upacara Seren Taun, dan Perayaan Natal adalah saat-saat mereka bekerja sama tanpa mengganggu kegiatan beribadah. Kegiatan-kegiatan tersebut merupakan pembelajaran bagi para remaja dan anak-anak karena mereka adalah generasi penerus yang harus mempertahankan toleransi beragama di daerah di mana mereka dilahirkan.Kata Kunci: karakter, toleransi beragama, dan masyarakat pluralisAPPLICATION OF CHARACTER OF RELIGIOUS TOLERANCE IN PLURALIST COMMUNITIY OF CIGUGUR KUNINGAN Abstract: Tolerance is the main capital in building harmony among religious believers, especially in Indonesia. This research was conducted to find out how the application of the character of religious tolerance in the life of the pluralist Cigugur community. The research was conducted in the villages of Cisantana and Cigugur, Cigugur Subdistrict, Kuningan District, West Java. Data collection in this study uses observation and interview techniques. Data analysis was performed using qualitative descriptive analysis techniques. The results of the study show that the Cigugur people who have diversity in embracing religion can coexist peacefully. The unifying factor of the Cigugur community is mutual respect because it has strong blood ties. In addition, the leaders of each religion and the flow of beliefs play an important role in the formation of religious tolerance. Eid al-Fitr, Seren Taun Ceremony, and Christmas Celebration are times when they work together without interfering with worship activities. These activities are learning for young people and children because they are the next generation who must maintain religious tolerance in the area where they are born.Keywords: character, religious tolerance, pluralist society

Learning process, as one of the core activities in education, is very prominent in realizing national education goals. However, in reality, despite the standard education process has been formulated, the learning process in Indonesia is still poorly developed. The purpose of this discussion is to analyze the regulations of the Minister of Education and Culture of the Republic of Indonesia Number 22 Year 2016 regarding process standards in Primary and Secondary Education and their implications on Islamic Religious Education (PAI) learning in schools. This study uses a qualitative approach and analytical method. Based on the results of the discussion, the primary and secondary education process standards listed in the regulation Number 22 Year 2016 are reliable and comprehensive. The learning principle with a scientific approach has implications on the wholeness of PAI learning process, as the subject is required to be understood comprehensively, not partially. To accomplish this, PAI teachers must use approaches, strategies, methods, techniques, tactics and learning models that are in harmony with the learning material that is delivered, so that an effective and efficient learning process will be achieved.

The social distancing policy in the COVID-19 outbreak has influenced the non-holistic learning process, causing several moral problems. The learning process tends to promote the cognitive aspect, while the affective aspect tends to be neglected. This research aims at offering a learning model that promotes religious ethical values through religious education in junior high schools (SMP/Sekolah Menengah Pertama) in an effort to develop effective attitudes. The development of the model is carried out in five stages of research, namely analysis, design, development, implementation, and evaluation (ADDIE). This research involved two groups of participants consisting of 376 students and 45 Islamic Education (PAI/Pendidikan Agama Islam) teachers in junior high schools in West Java. The research results explore the PAI learning model that develops religious ethical values as learning objectives. The process of internalizing these values is developed through the processes of knowing, of doing, and of being. Religious ethical values that are developed in students are the crystallization of four prophetic characters, namely fathonah, siddiq, amanah, and tabligh. The test results of two junior high schools, both public schools and religious-based schools, concluded that the application of the religious ethical learning model was able to improve students' religious ethical character at a high level. This research contributes to the development of PAI learning designs in the pandemic era based on the development of prophetic characters. In addition, this research can be a guideline for teachers or academics in developing research related to student character within the framework of character education.