Document Type : Review Article

Authors

• Hasan Zandiyeh ¹
• Fatemeh Samie ²

¹ Assistance professor of history, University of Tehran,Tehran.Iran

² M.A in history of Islamic Iran history, University of Tehran

Abstract

The formation of modern educational system in Iran brought women to the front of policy making and educational programs for the Pahlavid government. Since the Pahlavid government was supported by the elite and the intellectuals for the modernization of Iran, it considered women as a target of modernization. Therefore, women education became pivotal for the government in its modernization policy. Therefore, the educational approaches for girls, in line with the ideas and purposes of the government were discussed in the schools and a new picture was presented of the ideal woman. The new ideals were based on the discourse of “New Iran”. This discourse meant for women emancipation as a basis of women educational system and was opposed to the traditional role of woman in home and family.
In this study, the approaches, designs and the nature of women’s educational materials are discussed through an interpretive – analytical approach by emphasizing an explanation of the modernization of Iran and the explanation of the policies and educational programs for women.

Keywords

• Women education
• New Iran
• modern Woman
• Educational policies
• Educational programs

Main Subjects

• Social history

Extended abstract

The dominant discourse of the educational system and text books for women during Reza Shah Era (In secondary schools)

1- Introduction (problem statement, questions/hypotheses and research background):

  The formation of the modern educational institution in Iran caused; Women become a subject for policy and planning of the modernist Pahlavi government. since the Pahlavi government was formed with the support of elites and intellectuals with the aim of modernizing Iran; From the very beginning, he paid attention to women as one of the pillars of achieving this goal. As a result, women's education was placed at the top of the government's modernization programs. Therefore, educational approaches for raising girls, in line with the ideas and goals of the government, were drawn in the schools of a new design and model of the ideal woman.

During Reza Shah's era, the main focus of women's education topics in textbooks was the approach of paying attention and highlighting the role of women as wives, mothers and teachers of the country's children (the role of women's generation), creating and strengthening the spirit of patriotism and service to the country. The "modern" and "today" woman as the "ideal woman" was the name of the educational plans that were defined in the textbooks; The redefinition of the "ideal woman" was based on the idea of "women's liberation" which was attached to the traditional roles of women; These new concepts formed the main and focal axis of the educational topics for girls in textbooks; which included trainings about helping the economy of the family and the country, raising children, husbandry, housekeeping, sewing and cooking, along with a scientific approach.

Considering the important role of women in families and raising children, it is important to investigate the educational approaches of women in recognizing their social, cultural and identity aspects in the modernization project of Iran, which was defined in the form of mother, wife and modern woman. The main question is, what nature, approach and features did the textbooks and educational programs for girls and women have in the era of Reza Shah?

One of the most important researches in the field of the current research is the article "New motherhood and women's education in the era of Reza Shah" (Hosseini 1400). This research, using gender analysis and a feminist approach, examines the construction process of the new concept of motherhood; The main idea of the research is how this concept made women's education a necessity and how was this education quantitatively and qualitatively affected by the idea of new motherhood? According to the author's analysis, the development of a specific definition of women as educators of future generations of the country caused the emergence of the idea of a mother-educator and an educated housewife; Therefore, despite the quantitative growth of women's education, since this education was strongly ideological and linked to a kind of modern patriarchy; The idea of new motherhood was considered as a strategy and could not transform the social order based on the inferiority of women and provide the grounds for the entry of educated women into society and professional jobs; The educational system, along with other cultural centers, were solely responsible for educating mothers and wives who are guardians of national values and protectors of Iranian family values; And teaching this issue, which is ultimately the best thing for women, motherhood and marriage.

Among other researches in this field is the book "Foundations of Sovereignty Ideology and Its Influence on Texts and Course Materials in the First Pahlavi Era" (Hamidi, 2013). According to the analysis of the book, nationalism and modernization of the Pahlavi era as the most important pillars of the ideology of sovereignty were closely linked with the components of antiquarianism, patriotism and kingship. Therefore, these components had the greatest impact on the content of textbooks and these books reflected the ideology of the government in the mentioned formats.

In these researches, the principles and approach according to which the new educational system of Iran was set, planned and targeted were not considered; Therefore, the issue of women's education, the goals and ideas of the educational system of the ideal woman, and the challenges of educational planners in this field and its discourse developments are the focus of the present research.

2- Research method

  The purpose of the research is to represent women's educational programs in Reza Shah period schools by presenting a regular formulation and as fruitful as possible from first-hand sources. The research method in this research will be descriptive-analytical and the method of data collection is library and documentary. For this purpose, the explanations made are based on the concept of continuity in history, that is, the explanation of an event by identifying the internal relationships of that event with other events and placing it in its historical context. Such an explanation depends on the belief that the investigated events are considered part of a general transformation existing at the same time (Stanford 1382: 140). Therefore, the goal and purpose of women's education policies and programs, the motivations related to it, the actions of policymakers have been tried. The education and platform in which these programs were designed and implemented should be evaluated and all the events and conditions concurrent with it and all the related events and conditions before and after it should be taken into consideration.

3- Discussion and conclusion

The most and most important role, place and position that women were assigned in the secondary school textbooks of Reza Shah's period is "mother"; The ideal mother and wife were considered the highest concepts in textbooks. The redefinition of a woman's role as an ideal mother and wife was presented in the form of the traditional role of women but with new approaches; Therefore, a significant part of the textbooks was compiled in the description and drawing of such a woman; The best manifestation of the "ideal mother" was her patriotism and kingship; A mother who was ready to sacrifice her children for the sake of her beloved motherland, and she is the one who establishes the love for the motherland in the institutions of her children. In addition, the "ideal mother" was a mother who was aware of modern science about childbearing and parenting; Such a mother should have complete scientific information on pregnancy health, Childbirth and scientific upbringing of children (nutrition, health, clothes, behavior and diseases of children).

Another part of the ideal woman's field of activity was devoted to being a wife; Making the family center attractive and turning it into a place of comfort and relaxation for the man was the task of the ideal woman; Therefore, such a woman should know information about the political-social situation of Iran and the world and be aware of the news of the day, so that she can be a worthy companion for her husband; On the other hand, this issue required having skills in cooking, sewing, cleaning the house, arranging the house, social etiquette and grooming; This woman was endowed with such qualities as: discipline, punctuality, resourcefulness, patience, open-mindedness and foresight for the future of the family, taste and love for housework, and with the knowledge of economics and savings in household expenses, she helped her husband and thus He had also tried to improve the economic situation of the country.

Key words: women's education - new Iran - modern woman - educational planning - Reza Shah.