Guided digital mediation in early childhood Islamic education: multisensory approaches to religious identity formation

Purpose This study investigates how teachers in Islamic early childhood education in Indonesia use digital media to shape, mediate, and support young children's religious identity formation. It explores how digital tools function as pedagogical and emotional resources while teachers manage associated benefits and risks. Design/methodology/approach A qualitative interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) was conducted with 36 teachers from 12 PAUD/RA institutions in Semarang, Indonesia. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews via face-to-face meetings, voice calls, and WhatsApp voice notes, focusing on teachers' lived experiences, classroom strategies, and reflections on digital pedagogy, multisensory religious engagement, and children's responses. Thematic analysis identified patterns across digital content selection, scaffolding practices, and emotional mediation. Findings Teachers use digital media including murottal recitations, Islamic story videos, animations, and interactive applications as structured, scaffolded tools to promote memorization, ethical reflection, and religious routines. Multisensory engagement through audiovisual, kinesthetic, and discussion-based activities fosters spiritual calmness, joy, and moral internalization. Guided mediation, co-viewing, reflection, and creative responses transform digital experiences into interactive, meaningful learning, while parental involvement and balanced exposure mitigate risks such as overreliance on screens. Originality/value The study extends research on digital religious socialization by foregrounding teachers' lived experiences in early Islamic education. It highlights how digital media function as intentional pedagogical and emotional scaffolds for early religious identity formation, emphasizing multisensory engagement and ethical mediation. Findings provide practical guidance for educators, institutions, and policymakers seeking developmentally appropriate, culturally grounded, and ethically mediated digital pedagogies in early childhood spiritual education.