Iranian Journal of Comparative Education
Volume:5 Issue: 3, Summer 2022

In Iran and over the past four decades, study of the characteristics of philosophical schools through a critical-controversial approach has become a research tradition in the field of philosophy of education. The aim of present research was a comparative study of educational characteristics of the two schools of thought i.e. Islam and post-modernism through a systematic review. Researchers used Boolean's strategy to find the maximum sources and have used additional in-depth analysis method to analyze the data. The findings showed that the general structure of most selected researches is based on subjective assumptions that there is no opportunity to accept or reject them. Other finding indicates that the similarities between the two schools are mainly in the educational dimension and their differences are more in the ideological aspects. Based on these findings and while in reality there is no opportunity to respond to the criticisms of other philosophical schools in the Iran academic environment, researchers in the philosophy of education are advised to refrain from taking a critical approach and drawing unilateral conclusions against other philosophical schools.They should also be aware of the dangers of unproven mental assumptions in misrepresenting and distorting their research findings.

Among Iranian literary works, the Manshat contains extensive information on social topics such as establishment of schools, founders, teachers, students, curricula, and teaching methods. The purpose of this study was an analytical-comparative research of the situation of education in the Timurid period according to the content of existing Manshat. The data collection method was documentary by reviewing available Manshat and other sources (primary and secondary sources). To analyze the data, the researchers used only internal critique. Findings showed that while the Manshat have a variety of topics, about one third of them are dedicated to scientific / educational topics. According to the analysis of the content of the Manshat, the construction of schools in Timurid period is similar in four dimensions: Type of founder, method of establishment, selection of students and method of teaching. There is also a difference between the Manshat in the five dimensions of the founder's intention to establish the school, type of endowment (general or special), criteria for selecting a teacher, content of the courses and administrative structure. According to the findings, it is suggested that the participation of politicians in establishment of educational institutions based on "public endowment tradition” be again considered by educational planners in Iran

Realizing educational justice is one of the common goals of social reformers and educational policymakers. Considering the ideological foundations and social context, philosophers have explained the theoretical foundations of justice and its dimensions in different ways. The aim of research was to compare this concept from the point of view of the Shiite philosopher Seyed Mohammad Baqir Sadr with opinion of the liberal philosopher John Rawls with an emphasis on educational justice. The research method was qualitatively comparative, and documentary method has been used to collect data. For data analysis, Fairclough's critical discourse analysis method, which shows the role of social text in the discourse of two philosophers, was used. The first finding of the research revealed that Rawls and Sadr's common view of justice – and its types - as a moral virtue can easily ignore the role of cultural/social factors in the analysis of this concept. Another finding of the research is that the opinions of two philosophers imply the emphasis on right to education - as a basic need - on the basis of fair equality. Also, while Rawls considers the government mainly responsible for providing justice, Sadr insists on the role of the Islamic government and social takaful. In addition, in Rawls's thought, man is an active being who, through the principles of collective life and social contracts, achieves a common understanding about the concept, dimensions and way of realizing justice. On the contrary, Sadr's interpretation of justice is mainly religious. Another finding of the research indicates that Rawls emphasizes the establishment of educational justice by citing principles such as the original good, ignorance, fair equality and the role of a democratic and liberal society, while the principles accepted by Sadr include religion’s role, revelation, social takaful and social balance

The purpose of the current research is to compare Context-based Curriculum of Sciences in Junior Secondary Schools of Iran and selected countries. The countries of the England , Netherlands, and United States of America were chosen based on their pioneers in the field of science education and according to the strategy of "different social systems, different educational outputs". Also, the four-stage Bereday’s model was used to analyze and compare the data. In order to increase the validity and reliability of the data, the original documents and self-assessment were used respectively. The findings of research indicated that the most important similarities between four selected countries are strengthening scientific literacy, acquiring process skills and understanding science concepts. The most important difference between the selected countries is use of different contexts and approaches in implementing the curriculum. Also, the comparison between Iran and the selected countries reveal that the similarities are more in the intended curriculum and differences in the implemented curriculum. In fact, in Iran's educational system, the appropriate framework and necessary arrangements for the implementation of the curriculum have not been prepared. Weakness in implementation has been effected Iran's acquired curriculum. Another finding of the research highlighted that there is no consistency between the three planned, implemented and acquired curricula in Iran. It is suggested to the curriculum planners of Iran to pay more attention to the role of teacher in designing the curriculum, role of the student in the learning process, and also the evaluation process of the curriculum

Identification of talented people for educational organizations management and fostering them is one of the common challenges of educational system of developed and developing countries. The purpose of present research was to investigate succession system of educational leaders in four successful educational systems of Japan, Singapore, Finland and the United States of America from a comparative perspective. The research and data collection methods were qualitative -based on George Bereday's approach- and documentary respectively. The findings indicated existence of seven similarities among selected countries in components such as: Difficulty of finding a suitable candidate, lack of a formal succession system, importance of teaching experience, role of in-service courses, evaluation of previous behavioral and professional performances, and role of Local Boards of Education. Also, the findings revealed difference between four countries in five components related to succession system. For example, while in Japan and Singapore seniority is the most important factor in the succession process of managers, Finland and USA do not necessarily follow it. Also, offering the opportunity to potential external candidates to replace the current managers - through conducting interviews and examining scientific and professional resumes - is more common in Finland and USA. Another important finding is the distinctive role of cultural factors in the succession process of Japan and Singapore, while in Finland and USA, the personal efficacy of the manager's potential successors is considered

The purpose of this study was to investigate curricula of university field of public policy in Iran, Turkey, South Korea and the United States of America. The research method was qualitatively comparative using Bereday’s four-step approach. Also, the strategy of country’s selection was “different social systems, different educational outputs”. Accordingly, the public policy curricula of John F. Kennedy College of Harvard University (USA), Seoul National University (South Korea), Sabancı University (Turkey), and University of Tehran (Iran) were compared. The findings highlighted that the most similarities among these four universities are related to the courses of professionals, economics and international affairs. Also, the minimum similarity of the courses is related to the political, communication, managerial, social, environmental and developmental courses. Another finding revealed the main difference among four selected universities was related to the courses with political, managerial, economic and professional nature. The least difference was observed in the courses with the nature of international affairs and environment.. With regards to the findings and according to the experiences of leading countries, it is suggested that Iran’s universities use more courses with a managerial, economic and professional nature in curriculum of university field of public policy.

The purpose of this article is to explain the content of primary school textbooks of the Islamic Republic with regard to the goal of "religious education". The research population included all books of the six grades of the primary school and the sample was limited to examining the contents of the Qur'an and “Gifts of Heaven” textbooks. The research method was qualitative (using the content analysis approach) and the documentary method was also used to collect data. To analyze textbooks, four elements of purpose, content, teaching method and evaluation method were taken into consideration. The findings reveal that there is a wide range of religious goals, which include very complex religious concepts - such as the concept of God, resurrection, alliance & dissociation - and simple concepts such as good behavior with neighbors. Another finding shows that the authors of religious textbooks have tried to teach Iranian children the appropriate content by using texts, poems, paintings and photos, considering the religious goals and the three domains of cognition, emotion and action, although the mechanism of achieving these goals with attention to the different levels of each domain is ambiguous. Also, although the authors apparently emphasize the use of various teaching methods, the active role of the teacher in the cognitive field and active role of pupils in the emotional and action domains have been emphasized more. In order to evaluate the students' performance, criteria such as the teacher's personal opinion and her/his knowledge about pupils - along with the practical performance of religious rituals such as ablution and prayer by the child - have been taken into consideration.