Developing Islamic Innovative Pedagogy in Early Childhood Education: A Faith-Informed Framework for Holistic and Sustainable Learning

Abstract

Islamic early childhood education (ECE) lacks a sufficiently articulated pedagogical framework that connects Islamic epistemology with contemporary child-centred practice and Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG 4) priorities. This conceptual paper develops Islamic Innovative Pedagogy (IIP) to address that integration problem. Using an integrative conceptual review and framework-development synthesis, the paper brings together foundational Islamic education scholarship, recent ECE literature, and policy sources on quality, inclusion and sustainability. The synthesis is organised around tawhid, tarbiyah, ta’dib and ta‘lim and is informed by comparison with integrated Islamic education and contemporary child-centred pedagogy. IIP comprises four interrelated dimensions: Tawhidic worldview integration, holistic child development, innovative child-centred methodologies, and inclusive and sustainable learning ecosystems. Its distinctive contribution lies not in introducing these elements individually, but in configuring them as an ECE-specific architecture linking worldview, developmental aims, pedagogical practice, ecosystem conditions and SDG 4. The framework offers a theoretically informed basis for curriculum design, teacher professional learning, quality discussion and future research in Islamic ECE. As a conceptual model, however, its feasibility, effects and transferability require empirical validation across diverse ECE contexts.