Identifying and developing the principles of multicultural education of the Islamic Republic of Iran

A pluralistic and multicultural society can move during the transition from the threat towards the opportunity, when the multicultural education and ethnic diversity are based on the principles. A multicultural curriculum that is compatible with the capabilities and capacities of the Islamic Republic of Iran’s system needs, above all, the extraction of the key principles and elements. Therefore, the present study aims at identifying and extracting the principles of multicultural education of the Islamic Republic of Iran. This research was qualitative in nature and it was analytical-inferential in terms of the research method. The research area of study included the views of Islamologists, upstream documents of Iran, history of education in Iran, and the documents of the selected countries on the multicultural education. The research sample was selected using the purposeful sampling method of the homogeneous type. The tools and methods of data collection were documentary methods, reviewing the documents and using the content analysis worksheets. Findings included the extraction of eleven principles of multicultural education, some of which are as follows: In the institution of education, human dignity and the rights of individuals should be protected, regardless of the cultural differences, opportunities for the quality education should be provided, with no attention to the color, race, class or religion. Education should promote the spirit of peaceful coexistence among the religions, sects and ethnic groups in Iran and the world, and also, it should provide opportunities for the religious education for the religious minorities and local languages for learners. Educating the students should be done in such a way that they avoid inspecting each other's opinions and do not attack others for having an opinion. Special identities should be formed in students and different groups, according to the individual differences along with a common identity.