Education In Iran Research Articles

Reconsideration of Language Assessment is a MUST for Democratic Testing in the Educational System of Iran

Recently, there has been a change from traditional language testing approaches, with a focus on psychometric properties towards critical language testing (CLT) with its social practice nature. CLT assumes tests not as neutral devices but as instruments of power and control which are related to authorities’ policy agendas to shape individuals’ and groups’ lives. Test consequences are not restricted to washback issues concerning teaching, learning, and instructional improvement. Rather, it goes far beyond educational context by illuminating issues such as values, ethics, biases, fairness, and test takers’ rights. With respect to CLT principles, this study attempts to critically examine the current status of language testing in Iranian education system. Two prominent high-stakes tests of Sampad Entrance Exam (SEE) and Nation-wide University Entrance Exam (NUEE) were used to uncover power relations, interpretations as well as the hidden intentions and consequences of tests in the educational system of Iran. Thus, teachers, administrators, test-takers and parents were selected (15 males/17 females) based on purposive sampling to participate in the research and semi-structured interview was adopted to gather in-depth data. The oppressive nature of tests, the marginalization of powerless testing parties, the asymmetrical power relationships, and the broader detrimental consequences and impacts of tests were obtained through Strauss and Corbin’s (Basics of qualitative research: techniques and procedures for developing grounded theory, SAGE, Thousand Oaks, 1998) constant comparative method of data analysis. To counterbalance negative consequences of the high-stakes tests, they all agreed on multiple assessment sources of the construct and a dialogically-based assessment system to provide social justice and equal world while knowledge and power are shared by all testing parties. It was also suggested that the use of critical thinking and raising the stake holders’ consciousness can be used as the strategies against the test abuses, power, and its consequences.

The Impact of Intellectual Capital Aspects on Family's Training in Iran's Education

The aim of this study was to evaluate intellectual capital aspects on family's training in Iran's education. The research method is descriptive survey and the statistical population are experts of PTA and instructors of family training of the country's education department that were 10526 people. Using cluster random sampling method based on the Cochran formula, 371 subjects were selected. Data collection questionnaires were self-made intellectual capital and family education and its validity was confirmed by experts and its reliability by using Cronbach's alpha coefficient was calculated 0.89 and 0.92. SEM results showed that the dimensions of intellectual capital (human, structural and relational) on the family education (context, content, structure and teaching) has a direct and significant impact and just structural impact on content and training is not significant. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2015.v6n6s6p138

A comparison of Iranian EFL vs. non-EFL teachers’ “knowing” of learner autonomy

Investigating the “knowing”, a module of the KARDS model proposed by Kumaravadivelu (2012) for teacher education, of Iranian teachers of learner autonomy, this study is an attempt to illuminate some of the yet unexplored areas of teachers’ various types of knowledge of learner autonomy. Furthermore, it attempts to illustrate how Iranian Non-EFL teachers’ knowing affects their practices with regard to learner autonomy and how this could differ from that of Iranian EFL teachers. To that end 112 EFL and Non-EFL teachers were purposefully cluster-sampled. Based on convenient sampling but only after data saturation was reached were 12 teachers interviewed. Based on the result of the interviews and the data gleaned from the literature a questionnaire was developed. The sample were asked to complete the questionnaire and then through negative case analysis some were interviewed. The questionnaire tapped into the social, political, psychological and personal aspects of learner autonomy. The results indicated the informants, be it EFL or non-EFL, found learner autonomy to be a psychological construct, which can be traced back to their personal knowledge. Finally, with regard to the feasibility and desirability of learner autonomy implementation in the education system, the informants see learner autonomy as more of a desirable concept than feasible. It is hoped that teachers and teacher educators find the results as well as the suggestions-for-action made at the end of the study helpful and that the results have tangible implications for the Iranian education system when fed into professional development activities and strategic planning.

Explaining, Cultural, Educational and Social Needs of Faculty Members of Farhangiyan University

<p>The present study is an applied research project and uses a descriptive-analytical survey design. It follows both qualitative and quantitative data collection procedures. The statistical population of the qualitative section consists of 19 Iranian education experts who are selected via targeted random sampling. And the statistical population of the quantitative section consists of all full-time instructors and faculty members of Farhangian University in six provinces of Iran (n=181), of whom 150 are selected via random sampling.<strong> </strong>Data are collected through semi-structured interviews and researcher-made questionnaires. To determine the validity of interviews and questionnaires, we have used confirmatory factor analysis for verifying construct validity and Cronbach’s alpha for estimating questionnaire reliability. Qualitative findings are analyzed based on the spiral of analysis and quantitative data are processed through descriptive and inferential statistics. According to the results of the qualitative section, the most important educational needs of Farhangian University’s faculty members fir into two areas: 1. Religious needs with an emphasis on Islamic education, and 2. ethical, cultural and social needs comprising four domains: 2.1 cultural, 2.2 social, 2.3 ethical, and 2.4 political. The results of the quantitative section also indicate that the educational needs of Farhangian University’s faculty members are higher than average in both areas. The most important need of Farhangian University’s faculty members in the cultural domain is related to the subscale “being aware of the role of university professors in relation to preserving, transferring, reforming, and recreating culture” while their most important need in the theological domain is related to “the ability to use the educational principles and implications of the Quran and Nahjolbalaghe” (Imam Ali’s book of ethical teachings)</p>

Cross cultural analysis of an Iranian mathematics lesson

Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to examine an Iranian mathematics lesson through the eyes of Japanese educators, and the critiques of Iranian teachers for raising the quality of teaching. In this paper, the Japanese lesson study process is considered as an approach to raising the quality of teaching.Design/methodology/approach– Qualitative methods including pre-lesson planning, peer observation of the lesson, post-lesson discussion, and semi-structured interviews with the participants of the post-lesson discussion meetings in Iran and Japan were employed for data collection. A detailed description and analysis of the lesson is provided for deep understanding of students’ mathematical communication in the class and teachers’ points of view in the post-lesson discussions about raising the quality of teaching.Findings– The findings are intended to clarify the significant influence that cross-cultural analysis has exerted on raising the quality of teaching and developing a culture of transnational learning that supports teachers to design appropriate learning tasks, to conceptualize mathematical phenomena, and to provide mathematical communication which encourage students to participate more in classroom activities.Research limitations/implications– This study provides a transnational learning opportunity for Iranian teachers to learn from Japanese educators how to deliver evidence-based analysis of a lesson for raising the quality of teaching in practice, look culturally and differently at what actually goes on in the classroom, and localize lesson study as a global approach to the “science of improvement.” However, issues to be considered in future studies include how such “small changes” can be linked together in local communities to expand the improvement from bottom up, and how to facilitate collaboration with the global community to expand transnational learning.Practical implications– Traditionally in Iran, there are a variety of teacher training programs but there are no examples of lesson study like those that take place in Japan as a model of practitioner inquiry for raising quality of teaching. Hence, it can be said that Japanese lesson study may provide a new approach of transnational learning in the Iranian education context for building a “science of improvement.”Social implications– In the case of Iran, especially at the elementary school level, teachers do not have enough preparation or experience. Therefore, raising the quality of teaching through lesson study that has an actual impact on teacher and teaching quality and developing a “science of improvement” has become a pressing concern in national and international contexts.Originality/value– The case study shows that the transfer of the Japanese model of lesson study plays a significant role in harnessing the potential of students and teachers as well as teachers themselves by improving teaching. Efforts by teachers to communicate and learn from each other’s strengths, in fact lead to the realizing of the students potential and thinking process. In particular, it helps supply more open-end and in-depth task learning, which anticipates student thinking, understanding, recognizing and questioning.

Exploring Teachers’ Perception of the Efficacy of ELT in Iranian Public Schools and Private Language Institutes

This paper intended to compare teaching English in private language institutes and public schools in Iranian Education system from the viewpoint of the English teachers who practice in both systems. It also aimed at examining teachers’ preference to teach-in either place. 15 English teachers in Ilam city participated in the study and data were collected through a researcher-made questionnaire, including 60 Items through which respondents were asked to express their dis/agreement on 5 subscales. The results showed that better management, better fulfillment of the educational needs, and better teaching environment were among the reasons why the teachers preferred to teach in private language institutes. The study then, provides suggestions for improvement of ELT in the public system.

A Critical Study of the Iranian Teaching Textbooks on Iranian Classical Performance

Introduction Many Iranian and international authors and researchers such as Bruno Nettl, Jean During, Stephen Blum, Laudan Nooshin, Nelly Caron with Dariouche Safvat, Hormoz Farhat, Sasan Fatemi, Mohsen Hajarian, Ameneh Youssefzadeh, and Mohammad R. Darvishi have attempted to construct a broader understanding of Iranian music structure and to place it in the context of postrevolutionary sociopolitical change in Iran. (1) Since the turn of the twenty-first century a significant number of publications pertaining to Iranian music have been released by Iranian scholars in Iran. Scholarly interest in Iranian music has been mirrored by an increasing number of performances and a general growth in cultural-musical festivals and industry publications within Iran. Support and patronage for Iranian music has reached a point where one cannot count the number of concerts (Western, popular, regional, and Iranian classical), festivals, and music competitions that take place in Iran today. For example, one Iranian music association released a collection of ninety-six cassettes of regional music, with booklets, in Tehran in 1995. (2) Despite religious restrictions over the use of music, Iranian classical music has remained of great interest to both Iranian and foreign scholars. Iranian classical music education refers to the master-disciple educational framework in which all performance and interpretation happens through imitation, memorization, and repetition of the radif--the Iranian music repertoire-until, after many years of study, the student becomes a mature improviser-composer. (3) Despite widely held misconceptions, the 1979 Islamic revolution can be considered the greatest renaissance in the history of Iranian music because to a large extent it protected Iranian classical music against semi-Westernized pop music during the late 1970s. In 1968 the Centre for the Preservation and Dissemination of Music (Markaz-e Hefz Va Esha'e-Ye Mosiqi Sonati), which was initially proposed by Nur-Ali Borumand (1909-76), was established under the support of National Iranian Radio and Television. The Centre aimed to revive Iranian classical music, and it significantly preserved Iranian classical music during the late 1970s. (4) There are a few exceptions to this, such as motrebi, a kind of traditional entertainment music genre. (5) It can be argued that the increase in the musical literature of Iran reflects the people's nationalistic passion for their cultural roots and the government's effort to promote the cultural reconstruction that had begun earlier in the 1990s. This research examines the development of Iranian music pedagogy through a critical study of the teaching materials and textbooks in the field of Iranian classical music pedagogy. Context In general, the literature published on Iranian music can be organized thematically into six categories: (1) biographical literature; (6) (2) theoretical analysis of Iranian classical music; (7) (3) historical and sociopolitical contexts; (8) (4) regional music of Iran; (9) (5) musical instruments; (10) and (6) Iranian music pedagogy. (11) Of the six music categories noted above, writing on the theoretical analysis of Iranian classical music encompasses the greatest percentage of publications, while the research on regional music and Iranian music pedagogy are quite limited in number. (12) Among these categories, only the Iranian pedagogical category is relevant to this research, as it will be addressed throughout the article. Challenges Confronting Iranian Music Pedagogy Many rapid socioeconomic and political changes have impacted Iranian instrumental teaching and learning processes since the early twentieth century. Prominent among these changes are the institutionalizing of Iranian music education and the introduction of sound technology and Western notation. The two other factors that emerged in the late twentieth century are financial issues (e. …

Effective Employment: A Basic Objective for Curriculum Design in Higher Education

Education is the most fundamental factor in social and economic development, and economic growth is a major objective for all countries. Education leads to change individuals' values and perceptions and this alone directly affects economic condition. In this review paper, it is aimed at investigating the extent to which students and pupils are prepared and trained for gaining skills and motivation needed in today's job market. It should be the most basic and essential concern of the curriculum planners of Iran's education system. The most important question mainly addressed in this study is as follows: What features should education system and curriculum have to help students develop and improve economic growth of labor market? In analyzing the studies and researches carried out in this regard, the following results were obtained: Attracting graduates from universities and centers of higher education in the labor market depends on their abilities and characteristics some of which should be provided for them while studying. It seems that lack of congruence between processes and educational materials at universities and required skills and abilities for labor market is the most important factor for graduates in failing to find jobs and be employed. Business process implies the application of machines instead of manual tasks. Thus, it seems that curriculum designers should reduce the amount of handwork skills and instead they should add mental skills training. To this end, priority funding should be allocated to public education.

Development of Education in Iran with an Emphasis on the Role of Mirza Hassan Roshdieh

The present research tries to study the history of development of Iranian education. First, we will study education from the very beginning of Islam up to establishment of Darolfonoon. We will find that no great measures have been done in this period for the fundamental development of education until mid 13 th century when Darolfonoon School was established. The way for its establishment had been paved before by Amir Kabir, the grand Iranian chancellor. In 1856, the Qajar government of Mozafareddin Shah interfered directly in the old education. He was the first king who sometimes paid attention to the school. After him, the school was always declining. Then, the biography of Mirza Hassan Roshdieh will be studied. He was the first who established a new style school in Tabriz- Iran. The school became the origin of a great development in Iranian education. In order to get the difficulty of the said development, we will study the situation of Maktabs (one-room schools) and traditional education in Iran. Next, the difficulties of education system of Islamic countries will be studied. Then, we will study the educational ideas of Mirza Hassan Roshdieh, invention of audio method by him for teaching the alphabets and also the establishment of new schools by him. Finally, education development in Iran will be studied.

An Investigation into the Determinant of Service Quality among Management Students (Empirical Study of Iranian Students)

This study explores the Iranian education to generate a curriculum that should be comprehensive of the rich inheritance of different variables like knowledge, skill and attitude. For that purpose, Service Quality (SERVQUAL) is a standard instrument to evaluation the level of quality provided. The present study is an attempt to measure the level of Service Quality provided by Zenithal in the field of technical education among management students. The results of the questionnaire survey are analyzed in relation to the five Service Quality (SERVQUAL) dimensions (tangibles; reliability; responsiveness; assurance; empathy) and revealed that various aspects of quality differ significantly based on some demographic variables.

School-Based Management (SBM), Opportunity or Threat (Education systems of Iran)

School-Based Management (SBM) is features educational system in recent decades. SBM refers to increase of involvement of parents, students, teachers, officials, principals and beneficiary groups of the community and local organizations may increase the independency, responsibility and accountability of school. As a result, a key characteristic of SBM can be anticipated to improve student academic achievement and other school outcomes as these local community claims closer monitoring of school staff, better student appraisal, a closer match between the school's requirements and its policies, and a more effective use of resources. The purpose this research was a study of implementing School-Based Management in Iranian Education System.In this research, have been tried to review school-based management characteristics reviewed, through theoretical principles and methods of field study and library with Iranian education system is adapted. Also, this applied study is done on the basis of descriptive survey method.The findings of the research indicated that, for implementation of school-based management, indicators such as management of education system, curriculum, budget, educational content, the role of principals, teachers, educators, students and the other factors in Iran should be reconsidered.

Education in hope: On the practice of critical pedagogy in Iranian postgraduate and undergraduate EFL classrooms

1 IntroductionIn threshold of new millennium and with regard to significant moments that mankind experienced during last century of previous millennium, we can find trace of peripheral outcomes of modernized world in everyday life. The emergence of globalization and dominance of political and economic agents over world lead to appearance of new concepts and terminologies like sexism, feminism, imperialism and neoliberalism. Among these terms notion of criticality has been put on pedestal by pedagogues and intellectuals including Freire (1970b), Giroux (1983, 1988a), McLaren (1995). A big question mark on top of these scholars' heads has been how to bring about revolutionary changes in order to achieve consensus and harmony in world through education. The obsession of intellectuals with this notion and their desire to bring about social justice lead to emergence of critical pedagogy (CP).Critical pedagogy, like critical theories, begins with premise that human beings live in world full of contradictions and unequal and unjust distribution of power and privilege (McLaren, 2003). It aims to bring about social transformation by questioning that exist in society. Borrowing Barnett's (1997) idea that higher education should be about enhancement of critical being, significance of criticality in university classrooms becomes more evident. As Freire (1970b) stated knowledge emerges only through invention and re-invention, through restless impatient continuing, hopeful inquiry [we] pursue in world, with world, and with each other (p.72).Meanwhile, with emergence of English as the global (Nunan, 2003), lens of criticality has turned to language pedagogy revealing that language has become means to gain power and is considered to be intrinsically political (Peirce, 1989). Peirce (1989) argues that language encodes and propagates ideology and constitutes site in which interests of different social groups strive to gain dominance. Such issues are main concerns of well-known field of study named as critical applied linguistics (CALx) which is regarded as a potentially committed approach to applied linguistics claiming to combat injustice and inequalities (Cook, 2003:126). This discipline fashions perceiving language as political instrument which indoctrinates ideology of dominant classes to produce structural in society. It scrutinizes role of language in relations of power, control, and equality (Pennycook, 1999, 2001).1.2 Statement of ProblemEnglish language learning makes provision for life chances, opportunities for economic success, and status for learners, thus, it has become prevalent obsession in almost all countries. This mania has become so widespread that English is taught in almost all educational levels and individuals belonging to different ethnic groups with wide range of age strive to gain adequate language proficiency. Alternatively, studies on present situation of Iranian university education atmosphere reveal numerous deficiencies in need of remedial. In this vein, Qanbari (2011) points to dearth of critical thinking in our EFL education setting and foreshadows detrimental effect of uncritical view toward society in general and education system in particular. Taking into account that criticality is pedestal of new attitude toward education; i.e., CP, this study scrutinized application of CP, which though false to be considered as panacea, foregrounds growth of criticality.1.3 Objectives of StudyThis study seeks to portray current situation of TEFL undergraduate and postgraduate classrooms with regard to application of critical pedagogy and to examine extent to which principles of CP are operationalised in educational levels of universities. The researchers attempted to illustrate dominant pattern of language pedagogy in universities and find possible traces of CP residing in heart of such instructions to have clear picture of state of CP principles in Iranian education system. …

Virtual Applications and Real Problem: Education and Higher Education in Iran

Important aspects of Education and Higher Education such as Flexibility, Access, Relevance, Privatization, Human Resources, National Development, Innovation, and Globalization are all subject to a radical transformation as a result of substantial changes and new circumstances occurred and are occurring with the introduction into and application of information technologies (IT) in this realm. It was justifiably expected that these transformations would also occur in the Iranian Education and especially Higher Education. The paper, after outlining the new expectations from and challenges in Education and Higher Education throughout the world and the rise of new perspectives for them, will focus on major developments in virtual Education and Higher Education in Iran—considering the framework of recent socio-economic demands and expectations. Based on a descriptive method, and with the use of available official data, though critically, an overview of e-learning in Iran will be portrayed and its recent developments, quantitatively and qualitatively, resulted from the introduction of IT into the pre-university and university systems (as an important part of national TAKFA plan and its aftermath) would be reviewed, and the achievements and shortcomings during the last ten years analyzed and discussed. It will be demonstrated in this paper that the aptitude for and expectation from virtual education is very high in the country. The paper tries to shed light on why the gap between what is realized and what is expected is so deep.

Reflective practice in developing world contexts: a general review of literature and a specific consideration of an Iranian experience

This paper begins with a review of an emerging set of studies, combining a critical focus on reflective teacher development in developing educational contexts, and a greater level of authorial identification (as compared with previous studies) with the contexts being researched. Next, the paper adds to this emerging literature an analysis of a teacher development initiative in Iran, aimed at giving a group of experienced English-as-a-foreign-language writing teachers time to reflect on their practice. This analysis reveals some shaping influences that appear similar to influences observed in other developing contexts. At the same time, the analysis highlights particularities of this Iranian context. Consistent with findings in other contexts, the teachers’ reflections focused on their working conditions, but did not go very far beyond understanding the challenges these conditions constituted. The teachers also talked about their limited engagement with professional literature, and reflected on how this may have affected their ability to enact new practices. Despite these constraints, the teachers did raise their awareness of various aspects of policy and practice, they did challenge aspects of the hierarchical Iranian education system, and over time they appeared to develop a heightened sense of professional agency.

Studying the Impacts of Globalization on Iranian Education System

The purpose of this study is to analyze the degree of globalization of important indicators of education system in Iran including teaching approaches, educational tools and facilities, curriculums and contents, and education management.Findings suggest that the situation of Iranian education system has some distance with the globalized level and post modernism and is more aligned with traditional indicators and is stagnant and somehow modernity. Among these indicators, teaching approaches are closer to the globalized level and educational tools and facilities are further than others relative to the globalized standards.Holding in-service training courses for teachers and encouraging them to obtain higher scientific degrees as well as equipping schools with educational technologies by the help of designating more budget, motivating non-centralized programs, employing graduates of education management fields in order to take charge of management in education system can lead to a reduction in the gap between education system of Iran and the globalized one.

Iranian Parents’ Resistance to Incompatible Aspects of Western Culture: Implications for ELT Material Development

The British and US varieties of English have now come under suspicion of promoting American and British ways of life and marginalizing the local identities of their learners. Prompted by these suspicions, many scholars and policy makers have voiced doubts about the cultural adequacy of the native speaker-controlled ELT programs. In a recent survey conducted by the present authors (forthcoming), the attitude of the Iranian education officials towards the teaching of English in its western cultural context was surveyed. The findings indicated that they strongly disapproved of the teaching of English along with its western cultural values. To find out whether the above official resistance in Iran has the backing of the general public, a cultural resistance survey was conducted. 393 male and female Iranian parents from different walks of life participated in this survey. The results showed that the high school students’ possible adoption of the western lifestyle and their exposure to the manifestations of incompatible western culture were resisted by their parents. Based on the findings of this research, the researchers made a number of recommendations for international, regional and local ELT material development.

Citizenship values in school subjects: A case-study on Iran's elementary and secondary education school subjects

In this research, using ‘cultural reproduction’ theory, level of Citizenship Values presence in elementary and secondary school subjects of Islamic Republic of Iran's education system has been critically studied. Selected textbooks to be analyzed include four kinds of school subjects that concept-wise can whether implicitly or explicitly contain material relevant to democratic Citizenship Values. The method utilized in this research is “critical discourse analysis” in order to trace and extract the footprints of values concealed in school subjects. The research results demonstrate that in these books the concepts such as contentment, satisfaction, patriarchy, religious superiority, obedience, and submission are presented more.

Gender in school subject: A case-study on Iran's primary levels - school subjects

In this research, content-analysis method has been used to study the presence of gender ideology and the way gender is represented in Islamic Republic of Iran's education system's school subjects. To achieve this goal, four of primary school's grade five subjects have been selected as the sample to be studied. The results demonstrate that in these books the presence of males (boys) is considerably more than females (girls) and those genders are represented with soundly-segregated features, specifications and careers. The presence ratio of boys to girls in the pictures of these books is approximately 3 to 1 / 3:1. Insert an abstract of 50-100 words, giving a brief account of the most relevant aspects of the paper.

Origins of Iran’s Modern Girls’ Schools

This article sketches a history of Iran’s early girls’ school movement and examines its origins, goals, curricular content, and relationship to the state. It revises the tendency in the existing scholarship on modern education and reform to credit the Pahlavi state as the initiator of female education. Specifically, I argue that modern-style girls’ schooling did not begin in the 1920s with the founding of statesponsored girls’ schools of the late Qajar and early Riza Shah era, but in an earlier period under the auspices of indigenous religio-ethnic minorities and Muslims. The Riza Shah era was an important phase of a longer-term trend that placed both state support and propaganda behind the early twentieth-century girls’ school movement. But it was the founders of the first modern Iranian girls’ schools who had already made important decisions in framing the structure, content, and organization of these schools. The study is based primarily on the memoirs of Iranian educators, the writings of foreign observers in Iran active in Iranian education circles, and Persian-language press sources.

FROM INTERNAL EVALUATION TO QUALITY ASSURANCE IN HIGHER EDUCATION: THE CASE OF MEDICAL EDUCATION IN IRAN

This article elaborates on the experience of higher medical education evaluation in Iran. Although institutional evaluation in Iran started in about a decade ago, recent policies of the government to increase quality of higher medical education have contributed to a special effort in designing and implementing evaluation mechanisms in university systems in Iran. Among these a process of internal evaluation (IE) was designed for the medical education in 1996. It was implemented as a pilot project at six departments in three medical sciences universities in 1997. The IE aimed at i) improving teaching and learning processes; ii) contribute to development planning of departments. The results of the pilot project was so promising that it was decided to implement the IE process in more than 30 departments of, internal medicine around the country. Through the IE mechanism, quality of the inputs, teaching­ learning operations in practice, outputs and outcomes of the internal medicine departments were reviewed and judged against department's stated objectives. The process of the IE is based on: a) strong involvement of faculty members for the clarification of objectives and b) attempt to review the available resources of the department and prepare a departmental plan for improving the quality. Key words: medical; education; Iran; internal evaluation; quality assurance.