Religious Extracurricular Programs and the Formation of Spiritual Values at SMP Negeri 1 Kutapanjang

Abstract

This study analyses how religious extracurricular programs cultivate students’ spiritual values at SMP Negeri 1 Kutapanjang, Gayo Lues. Using a qualitative descriptive design, data were gathered from the principal, the teacher responsible for religious activities, and six purposively selected students through activity observation, semi-structured interviews, and examination of schedules and attendance records. The findings indicate that the school’s religious program, comprising congregational prayer, weekly Qur’an recitation, short sermons, and commemorations of Islamic holy days, works less through the content of what is preached than through the regularity of its timing, which makes participation an ordinary condition of the school day rather than an elective commitment. Because the activities sit inside the timetable rather than after it, students never face the decision to opt in; what they acquire first is the rhythm of worship, with its meaning supplied afterwards by teachers during brief framing moments before and after each activity. This reading recasts the fluctuation of student enthusiasm not as a defect of the program but as evidence that the program does not depend on mood. The constraints identified, namely limited supervision time, uneven participation, and modest facilities, pushed supervisors to concentrate their attention on the most routine activities. The study concludes that spiritual value formation rests on sustained regularity accompanied by teacher interpretation rather than on the multiplication of activity types.