Strengthening children's social attitudes through social education practices: A case study in a religious care institution

Strengthening children's social attitudes is an important goal of social education in residential care institutions, particularly amid increasing individualism and changing patterns of social interaction among young people. This study examines how social education practices strengthen the social attitudes of foster children in a religious-based care institution. A qualitative case study was conducted at the Muhammadiyah Al-Amin Putri Orphanage in Malang Regency, Indonesia. Data were collected through participant observation, in-depth interviews, and documentation involving foster children, caregivers, administrators, and a social studies teacher and were analyzed using the Miles, Huberman, and Saldaña interactive model. The findings reveal that children's social attitudes are strengthened through three interconnected processes: relational guidance and emotional support from caregivers, experiential social education practices—including etiquette, muhadhoroh, student organizational activities, and Ramadan Safari—and institutional collaboration that supports children's participation and reflection. Through these processes, children develop empathy, responsibility, cooperation, discipline, and social awareness through repeated social interactions and lived experiences. The study proposes a Relational Pedagogical Process model, demonstrating that social education in residential care institutions operates as a relational and experiential pedagogical process in which caregiver–child relationships, participatory social experiences, and reflection collectively contribute to the development of children's social attitudes.