Iranian Teachers Research Articles

Influence of gender and type of school on environmental attitude of teachers in Iran and India

The present study reports on secondary school teacher’s environmental attitude in India and Iran. One thousand and four teachers were selected through the stratified random sampling technique from 103 secondary schools of Mysore city (India) and Tehran city (Iran). Subjects consisted of 505 male and 499 females. They were assessed using the Taj Environmental Attitude Scale (TEAS) developed by Hasseen Taj (2001). Results revealed that there are significant differences between Indian and Iranian teachers in their level of environmental attitude. Also there are significant differences between them in environmental attitude across and within two groups with regard to their gender. Also in overall, type of school management (Government and private) is not a factor, which can affect teachers environmental attitude.

Teaching undergraduate psychology in the Islamic Republic of Iran

Psychology was first included in curricula at some Iranian universities beginning in the 1920s. Since then, teaching psychology has developed rapidly, and undergraduate psychology programs are offered at 19 universities in Iran. Psychology has been available as a major since the mid‐1960s. The Bachelor of Science (BS) degree in psychology is awarded after 4 years study. Courses follow the credit‐hour and semester system and psychology programs leading to the BS require 130–135 credit hours of study, completed over about eight semesters. Credit hours refer to the number of hours each course meets per week during a semester. There are about 34,000 psychology students at the BS level in Iran now. These students study in four main fields: general, clinical, exceptional children, and industrial psychology. All courses are divided into general, basic, special, and selective categories. Psychology teachers in Iran have different approaches to the teaching‐learning process in psychology and use various methods appropriate for specific topics, although lectures are the most common. Different methods for assessing student learning are also used, but multiple‐choice exams are the most common method. Students can also continue their studies in psychology towards the MS and PhD degrees. There has been considerable growth of universities in the regional areas of Iran in recent years, and this trend has coincided with the development of distance‐education methods. Recently, in 2003, a law pertaining to psychology and counselling services was passed by the Islamic Iranian parliament. This law grants equal status to medical and psychological counselling services. This will be likely to increase the demand for psychologists in the workplace and result in additional programs oriented toward counselling services. Although there are several psychological associations in Iran, they do not participate in the preparation and administration of the curriculum.

Beliefs and behaviours of Iranian teachers toward early detection of breast cancer and breast self-examination

A descriptive study was carried out to explore the beliefs and behaviours of Iranian teachers toward breast cancer and breast self-examination (BSE). A 10% random sample of 8000 teachers working in four central regions of Tehran was selected. Data on beliefs and behaviours regarding breast cancer and BSE were collected by means of a structured questionnaire. In all, 578 women participated in the study. The mean age of the respondents was 37.3 y (s.d.=8.8), and most were married (83%). The majority of the respondents believed that ‘Like every other woman I am at risk of breast cancer’ (67%) and that ‘Family history of breast cancer is a risk factor for breast cancer’ (59%). However, only 6% of them reported that they are performing BSE on a regular basis. The most common reasons for not doing BSE and not going for clinical examination were lack of knowledge and the belief that it was not necessary (34 and 36%, respectively). Doing BSE was more frequent in married (P<0.00001), and older (P<0.00001) women. Except for those with a positive family history of breast cancer, there was no association between breast cancer beliefs and almost all other variables studied. The findings suggest that although the majority of Iranian teachers seem to be quite knowledgeable about breast cancer, they need more education on breast cancer and BSE. Since teachers' beliefs and behaviours may have an impact on young females, planning training courses for this group of women is essential.

Beliefs and behaviours of Iranian teachers toward early detection of breast cancer and breast self-examination

A descriptive study was carried out to explore the beliefs and behaviours of Iranian teachers toward breast cancer and breast self-examination (BSE). A 10% random sample of 8000 teachers working in four central regions of Tehran was selected. Data on beliefs and behaviours regarding breast cancer and BSE were collected by means of a structured questionnaire. In all, 578 women participated in the study. The mean age of the respondents was 37.3 y (s.d.=8.8), and most were married (83%). The majority of the respondents believed that ‘Like every other woman I am at risk of breast cancer’ (67%) and that ‘Family history of breast cancer is a risk factor for breast cancer’ (59%). However, only 6% of them reported that they are performing BSE on a regular basis. The most common reasons for not doing BSE and not going for clinical examination were lack of knowledge and the belief that it was not necessary (34 and 36%, respectively). Doing BSE was more frequent in married ( P<0.00001), and older ( P<0.00001) women. Except for those with a positive family history of breast cancer, there was no association between breast cancer beliefs and almost all other variables studied. The findings suggest that although the majority of Iranian teachers seem to be quite knowledgeable about breast cancer, they need more education on breast cancer and BSE. Since teachers' beliefs and behaviours may have an impact on young females, planning training courses for this group of women is essential.

ESL, EFL, EIL Revisited: Investigation, Evaluation and Justification of a Shift in the Current ELT Models in Iran

English language teaching in Iran has usually been considered an EFL model. This position, though common and widespread, seems to need revision in several grounds. Through comparing EFL, ESL and EIL (English as an international language) models based on Smiths (1978) comparative study, the present article reveals that the ELT in Iran no longer follows EFL model. The comparative evaluation makes it clear that in terms of most categories ELT in Iran shows the characteristics of EIL. Therefore, through characterizing it as a developmental process along a continuum towards EIL, the present study argues for instances of paradigm shift and thus claims that the ELT context in Iran is ripe for revision.

Educating School Librarians in Iran

School libraries are of especial significance in supporting the curriculum in developing countries like Iran, where an innovative educational system is in process of being implemented. Training librarians to fulfil their roles in this new context is therefore a priority. Research at Loughborough University Department of Information and Library Studies into educating school librarians resulted in the development of a competency based educational programme for Iranian teacher librarians; the investigation took account of the problems that have resulted from under-resourcing or poor use of resources over many decades