The Influence of School Religious Environment on Students’ Religious Attitudes

Abstract

This study examines the influence of the religious school environment on students’ religious attitudes at SMAN 4 Karawang from the perspective of Islamic Religious Education. The study addresses a research gap concerning the limited empirical evidence on how school religious culture contributes to students’ moral and spiritual development in Indonesian senior high schools. A quantitative correlational design was employed, involving 79 valid responses from twelfth-grade students selected through simple random sampling. Data were collected using validated and reliable questionnaires, supported by observation and documentation. Descriptive and inferential analyses were conducted using IBM SPSS Statistics, including validity and reliability tests, normality and linearity tests, ANOVA, and simple linear regression. The findings indicate that the religious school environment is categorized as moderate, and students’ religious attitudes are also at a moderate level. Regression analysis reveals a positive and significant effect, with R² = 0.441, showing that 44.1% of the variation in students’ religious attitudes is explained by the religious school environment, while the remaining 55.9% is influenced by external factors such as family, peers, digital media exposure, and students’ psychological conditions. The novelty of this study lies in its holistic approach, integrating structural, social, and cultural aspects of the school environment to assess their cumulative effect on students’ religious attitudes. These results highlight the role of structured religious activities, teacher modeling, and school culture in fostering students’ moral and spiritual development, providing empirical evidence to guide effective character education programs in Islamic Religious Education.