Iranian Education Essay -- Iran Middle East

Iranian culture From Modernization to TraditionalismAn education system, because of its blueprint as the shaper of the future, is a goodindicator of what is going on within a country politically and culturally. The historyof the Iranian education system showed change as the ideological values of thecountry shifted with each raw regime change in the mid twentieth century. Iran, asa country, went from a country focused on modernization and secularization underthe Reza Shah, to a country focused on traditional Islamic values under the reinvigoratedgovernment completed after the Islamic Revolution of 1977-791. These changesshifted the very purpose of education, its impact on women (in arguably negative orpositive ways), and its literature. The shift in political focus from modernism toreligious traditionalism can also be seen in how religion is taught in Iran, especiallycompared with different countries around the world.The history of the Iranian education system from 1907-1977 is one that is filledwith problems. In 1907, Iran established a Ministry of Science and Art to controlall areas of education, even religious education. In 1910, this ministry wasreorganized and renamed the Ministry of Education, and given more power to setlaws and guidelines for education, religious and secular. This ashes was notnecessarily effective in setting new guidelines for Iranian schools. The mainproblem was overcoming was the lack of qualified, quality teachers (Szyliowicz 176-7).After 1925, the Shah2 built many new schools and tried to revitalize theeducational system. This effort was hampered again, by lack of qualified teachers(Szyliowicz 231), a lack of coherent ideology (Szyliowicz 232), and a program ofedu... ...ern Iran. Ithaca and London CornellUniversity Press, 1992.Rivard, Jean-Franois and dealimo Amadio. teach Time Allocated to ReligiousEducation in Official Timetables. Prospects 33 (2003) 211-217.Shavarini, Mitra K. Misconceptions about Islam and Womens Educat ion Lessonslearned from the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI). International Education.33.1 (Fall 2003) 40(11). Gender Watch. Proquest. Univ Mass Amherst. 10Feb 2006. .Szyliowicz, Joseph S. Education and Modernization in the Middle East. Ithaca andLondon Cornell University Press, 1973.UNESCO. Integration of Technology and Vocational Education into Special NeedsEducation. Austria, Colombia, Iran, Tunisia. Geneva Imprimeries Popularies,1977.Zia, Rukhsana. Religion Education in Pakistan An Overview. Prospects. 22 (2003)165-178.