A Study on the Components of Wisdom in the Content of Persian Text Books for the First Grade of Primary School based on Three Wisdom Models

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

Assistant Professor, Department of Education, Farhangian University, Tehran, Iran.

Abstract
Objective: Educating wisdom, whether implicitly or explicitly, in the first grade of primary school, through the content of textbooks, plays a fundamental role in the formation of children's personalities. At this sensitive stage of development, children not only learn language skills, but also become familiar with basic concepts such as empathy, responsibility, reflection, and analysis of moral situations. Accordingly, the use of theoretical frameworks of wisdom allows for a more accurate evaluation of educational content and shows how textbooks can be used to cultivate wise and responsible citizens. This research aimed to study the components of wisdom in the content of Persian textbooks for the first grade of primary school based on the three wisdom models of Ardlet, Webster, and Sternberg.
Method: The method was a descriptive-qualitative systematic review through content analysis. In this regard, the text of all lessons related to the first, second, and third grade Persian textbooks was examined using the explicit content analysis method.
Results: The results showed that the components of wisdom include academic knowledge, cultural and historical identity, spirituality, ethics/compassionate love, love of homeland and national responsibility, learning from nature with an aesthetic perspective, acquiring knowledge, openness to experience, public good, reflective perspective, recognizing emotions, social/group interactions, family-orientedness, practical intelligence, learning and teaching, awakening and learning from history, and applicant of cognitive tools. Comparing these components with three theoretical models including Ardlet's Three-Dimensional Model of Wisdom (2011), Webster's Five-Factor Model (2003), and Sternberg's Balance Theory (1998) showed that the components of wisdom in the Persian textbooks of the first grade overlap with many theoretical dimensions of wisdom, and in some cases, such as humor, reviewing memories and revising them, and tacit knowledge, there are visible gaps and have been given less attention.
Conclusions: It is noteworthy that components such as having an aesthetic view of nature and learning from it, spirituality, and learning from history have been given attention, which are not seen in the models of wisdom of Ardlet, Webster, and Sternberg, and this is one of the strengths of the Persian textbooks. It is suggested that in future revisions of textbooks, these dimensions should be included in a purposeful and educational manner through practical activities similar to real-life situations in order to pave the way for the upbringing of a wise, balanced, and responsible generation in society.

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