Designing a Framework for the Civic Literacy Curriculum of Social Studies Textbook of the Sixth-Grade Elementary School in the Islamic Republic of Iran

The purpose of this qualitative case study research was to design a framework for the civic literacy curriculum of the social studies textbook of the sixth-grade elementary school in the Islamic Republic of Iran.

The study participants included three groups as follows: 30 provincial teachers from the Fars General Directorate of Education, 9 faculty members of sociology from Shiraz University, and 27 participants from the heads of social studies groups of the first secondary school from the Fars General Directorate of Education. The participants were selected through typical case sampling. Data was collected via semi-structured interviews, and it continued until data saturation was reached. The obtained data were analyzed using thematic analysis.

A framework was designed for the civic literacy curriculum for the sixth-grade social studies textbook. The framework comprised 10 categories and sub-categories under the following headings: logic and why, objectives, content, learning resources, learning activities, role of teacher, grouping of learners, time of teaching, place of education, and evaluation.

The findings of this research showed that the acquisition of civic literacy could lead to the active participation of students in various civic affairs. Moreover, civic literacy was found to enhance human development and reduce cultural poverty in society. The development and cultivation of civic literacy of students in schools will have individual and collective benefits for the society. The formation of students’ civic literacy is an effective means to socialize students as future citizens, which requires the attention of planners and politicians to this educational strategy. Based on the results of this study, educational planners and textbook writers are encouraged to employ the framework developed in this study to develop and design a chapter for the sixth-grade social studies book.