According to the Public Relations of the Ministry of Education, Hojjat-ol Islam Dr. Moheyeddin Bahram Mohammadian said in the Joint Convention of Council of Deputies and General Managers of Educational Offices of Provinces: The first subsystem of “Reform Document” is “National Educational Plan” which was carried out by Organization for Educational Research and Planning in the form of production and revision of textbooks’ contents based on 6-3-3 protocol.
He also announced evaluation of 10th grade textbooks and added: There are 300 titles of textbooks published for 11th grade and planning for 12th grade has begun from the beginning of this year.
Students are provided by educational packages besides textbooks, Says Mohammadian; this substitutes textbooks monarchy with republic of educational packages.
Head of Organization for Educational Research and Planning considered “life Skills” one of the most important factors in educational plans and said: Principles should use cyberspace, social networks and applying educational plans in cyberspace for expanding and enhancing those skills.
Education is not a political system
Answering the question “what are the qualities of an ideal textbook, by the Ministry’s standard?” Hojjat-ol Islam Moheyeddin Bahram Mohammadian, head of Organization for Educational Research and Planning said: Textbook is just a part of educational plan and there are other sort of media like magazines, cyberspace, Roshd website and … involved in this program, reports Fars News.
- We have tried to change textbooks monarchy to the republic of educational plan
He continued: Educational plan is now provided as a package of which, textbooks are just one part. We have tried to change textbooks monarchy to republic of educational packages.
The ideal educational plan is the one which activates thinking and creativity. What we are seeking in educational plans today are elements of thinking and creativity, internal fate, inquisitive science and practicing that science; this science and action is based on morality so these elements may tune students’ communicating elements and their relationships.
These communicating elements are connection with oneself, , Connection with people, connection with universe and ultimately connection with God. This educational plan should also indicate the ways to “Pure Life”.
There are 11 learning zone; Thinking and Wisdom, Islamic Knowledge, Qur’an and Arabic, Farsi Language, Mathematics, Science, Hygiene and Health, Art and Culture, Social Studies, Work and Technology, Life Skills and Foreign Languages.
At elementary school these are though syncretic, at junior high they are independently taught and finally at senior high majors are totally separated.
According to the researches and evaluations through last 6 years that educational reform has been applied, students’ general knowledge, thinking and creativity are ascended.
Regarding large volume of the textbooks, Hojjat-ol Islam Mohammadian declared: Making proportional educational programs is one of OERP’s tasks.
- Every 1.5 pages of textbook needs 1.5 hours of education
Head of Organization for Educational Research and Planning remarked: At the time being, there is one session (1.5 hours) needed for every 1.5 pages of textbooks, moreover, according to the national educational plan there is also an instructor required. According to the national educational plan duration of each session is; 45 min for 1st to 3rd elementary levels, 50 min for 4th and 5th grades and 55 min for intermediate grades, but unfortunately there are two sessions merged which makes it 100 min now.
- Textbooks are appropriate for average intelligence / There is no answer book required
Textbooks are designed for normal students with average intelligence and so there would be answer books or other supplementary needed. But if a student is beneath average or on the other hand if some of them are above it, there are special schools for both these students.
- 850 hours of education for elementary school
Our problem is not content of textbooks, but it is the time. At elementary school we should have 850 hours of education while in reality it less than that.
- 2-3 minutes per student
Teaching method is an active one; meaning that in every hour of education there should be 2-3 minutes dedicated to each student. Right now we have classes up to 36 students and thus such schedule cannot be applied, Mohammadian stated.
Regarding the large volume of textbooks, Head of OERP said: Some of the contents of textbooks are reduced and the rest are comparable with other countries and international standards. I have checked 1150 textbooks.
Textbooks are not forever and as we do here, there is evaluation and revision (if necessary) every five years.
- Textbooks of 1st, 2nd and 3rd elementary grades are to be revised
We are reaching the limit of five years for textbooks revision and textbooks of 1st, 2nd and 3rd elementary grades are to be revised. In this revision books’ mass and volume, difficulty of lessons and other parameters are considered, added he.
- Culture of martyrs and martyrdom and Shahid Fahmieh are not deleted
There are those who try to discredit educational system. They claim that item concerning Shahid Fahmideh and Other subject related to the culture of martyrs and martyrdom is deleted from textbooks. This is not true and basically it is not thinkable to delete such articles.
- Universities “Entrance Exam” distorts pedagogical objective / National Broadcast promotes “Entrance Exam”
Head of Organization for Educational Research and Planning stated: Entrance exam distorts pedagogical objective of education. But who benefits from this exam? The answer of course is institutes who prepare student for entrance exam and who promotes this exam? To this we answer; National Broadcast. The next question is who relays these exams to lower levels? It is our own educational system and all these make a puzzle.
There are those who say that our education is Ideological and those who try to establish certain schools with certain goals, which of course on the contrary with “Reform Document” and this is a very complicated puzzle. We should try to define who is responsible for what and how much, even though unintentionally we intensify that.
First they claimed that concepts of dedication, sacrifice and martyrdom are removed from textbooks, which of course was not true. Then they said that the lesson of Shahid Fahmideh has been deleted, once again it is not true. Finally they said that a narration from Imam Khomeini is deleted, while this narration is actually mentioned in 3rd elementary grade, 6th and 7th grades.
Hojjat-ol Islam Mohammadian concluded: Organization for Educational Research and Planning is not a political system and it should not be and it will never be. It is a national organization whose policies would not be changed by different governments.
He added: At the time being, our guidelines are directions instructed by the Supreme Leader, “Reform Document” and national educational plan.