Exploring marketing orientation in integrated Islamic schools

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to scrutinize the marketing orientation and market-oriented cultural elements of integrated Islamic schools. These integrated schools teach modern science curriculum alongside comprehensive religious instruction in an Islamic environment. Design/methodology/approach This is an inductive, exploratory research from an interpretivist study. Narrative inquiry was undertaken to understand the perceptions, attitudes and actions of school senior management and teachers. Content analysis of the school websites and social media pages was carried out. In total, 7 schools and 16 respondents became part of the purposive sample. Findings The presence of several integrated Islamic schools, experienced Islamic education leadership and Islamic education consultants are evidence of a growing sector. The schools are technologically enabled, strongly customer-oriented and adept at inter-functional coordination. The need-gap found in this sector is in competitor orientation, curriculum development and recruitment of specific criteria-based staff. Practical implications With the mushrooming of integrated Islamic schools in Pakistan, the level of competition has also risen. The schools have made a considerable investment and strives to maintain and increase the enrollment rate of the institute. This research can enlighten integrated Islamic educators about effective education marketing practices and the prevalence of marketing orientation in such schools. Originality/value In Pakistan, private primary schools strive to differentiate themselves and competitively position their value proposition. The marketization of education has begun to affect perceptions of school staff, teachers, students and academic work itself. Yet, there is scarce exploratory research on marketing done by integrated Islamic primary schools. This study will contribute foundational work for the development of a holistic marketing model tailored to the requirements of integrated Islamic schools.