A Model for Educational Space-Creation: A New Approach to Religious, Moral, and Revolutionary Education

Introduction: To ensure that the Islamic Revolution remains connected to the revolution of Imam Mahdi (may Allah hasten his reappearance), we should focus on educating individuals who are potential soldiers of the front of truth in practice, with their main characteristics manifesting in three dimensions: faith, servitude, and revolutionary spirit (Razavi, 2017). The selection of the three categories of believer, devout, and revolutionary is based on the statements of the Supreme Leader in describing the main attributes of the great leader of the revolution, which he has elaborated on in various speeches and has introduced as an educational model for the future generation in these dimensions (Moradi, 2021). Attention to these three educational dimensions should begin from early childhood and adolescence and be strengthened over time. Accordingly, kindergartens and preschools provide a very suitable and diverse foundation for fundamental educational planning, and education at these ages will be more stable and beneficial (Yousefi, 2016, p. 161). The authors’ goal in developing an educational space-creation model (a model for creating an educational atmosphere) is to achieve a comprehensive framework for establishing educational objectives for all places, individuals, and capacities within a specific educational environment such as a school or any other educational setting. Based on these premises, the educational space-creation model can be defined as follows: “The educational space-creation model means selecting an approach in education where all factors, elements, and effective contexts in education are simultaneously employed and activated to achieve a unified educational goal within a defined time frame.”
Research Method: To achieve this, the research method and data analysis were conducted using the Colaizzi method (1978) in several stages:

The relevant texts (Quran, hadith books, and statements of the Supreme Leader) were read several times to familiarize the researcher with them and to be able to understand them.
Important sentences related to the topic (attributes of a believer, devout, and revolutionary person) were underlined.
Each important sentence was summarized into a descriptive concept.
 The concepts derived from the first three stages that were similar and could be grouped were categorized under a common theme.
The categories were reviewed to group them into larger categories based on similarities and commonalities, which could then be used to describe educational objectives.
The above description was validated by revisiting the studied texts and comparing the description with these texts.
The results from the previous stage were applied to the findings.
In the second step, according to these topics, the general educational objectives for each section were extracted, totaling 24 general objectives. In the third step, specific, behavioral, and educational principles based on the above general objectives were extracted, totaling approximately 52 specific objectives. In the fourth and final step, appropriate educational methods for institutionalizing these topics suitable for preschool ages were written with an inferential and analytical approach by the authors. The inferential orientation of this section is also based on the general principles of religious education. Finally, educational content appropriate to the proposed objectives and methods was suggested within the plan.
Research Findings: The educational space-creation model with the theme of faith, considering elements such as God, the unseen (angels, the Day of Judgment), and the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), with the overall objective of creating a suitable environment for the manifestation and strengthening of the child’s innate faith, is executable. The required implementation time is one week, and it is suggested that the faith schedule be held during a week coinciding with one of the Prophet’s (PBUH) festivals, using the week’s slogan “There is no god but Allah, Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah” and the gift of walnuts, symbolizing the Prophet’s gift to children. The specific objectives of this model include:

Creating a foundation for the manifestation and strengthening of the child’s innate faith in God.
Understanding the concept of the unseen and explaining its instances and the relationship of humans with these instances.
Creating a heartfelt connection of children with the Prophet (PBUH) and understanding the reason for his mission to strengthen faith in the Prophet (PBUH).

Table of Educational Space-Creation with the Theme of Faith


Execution Space

Method
Content
Pursued Goal
Science Workshop

experiment with sugar in water, oxygen, heat, light

Many organisms are not visible to the naked eye; what are the signs of each organism?


1 and 2




Classroom Space


poetry, painting, hadith


poetry and painting: about the loving relationship of the Prophet (PBUH) with children. Free painting: Me on the Day of Judgment, related hadith for each goal


1, 2, and 3




Free Class


pristine nature


spring season: a reminder of the Day of Judgment, discussion on divine unseen assistance. order, beauty, and harmony of the world: faith in God


1 and 2




Story Room


teacher’s monologue


the Prophet (PBUH), the gift of walnuts to children, the Prophet (PBUH) and long and short prayers. Book: God is very knowledgeable.


3




Thinking Room


discussion on philosophy for children


theme:  I came to know Allah through the breaking of determinations.
principle of avoiding potential harm


1




Play Room


the games of tic-tac-toe and snakes and ladders, hide and seek


explanation of the reason for sending prophets. Explanation of the unseen matters


2 and 3




Morning Program


breakfast feast (2 days).
singing and practicing the anthem and hadith in the class


barley bread, cheese, walnuts, milk


3




Break Time


virtual panel (first-person: the Prophet (PBUH))


the Prophet’s (PBUH) requests from children


3




Media


film screening,
mobile visual library


clips from the films “Muhammad: The Messenger of God” and “Muhammad: The Swallows and the Army of the Elephant” (divine unseen assistance), various activities of the Prophet (PBUH) in different dimensions


3




School Space


celebration of the Prophet’s (PBUH) birth, the mission (Biʿtha), and faith


celebration preparation by children. symbolic celebration of the bond between me and the sky


1, 2, and 3




Excursion


hiking, mosque, the city shrine (of the offspring of an imam)


practical explanation of the reason for sending prophets. practical connection in the house of God and the house attributed to the Prophet’s (PBUH) children


1 and 3




Group Activity


storytelling


weekly topics: divine unseen assistance. I came to know Allah through the breaking of determinations.


1 and 2




Home Activity


completing the list of transferring weekly concepts to the home


a list of unseen matters and divine assistance to the family


1, 2, and 3




Discussion and Conclusion: If we consider the foundation of the philosophy of education to be based on assumptions such as the inseparability of education, and on having a hierarchical view of the subject of education, and also believe in the principle of holistic consideration in the aspect of education, and under this principle, in the methodological aspect, to strengthen and enrich educational objectives, we utilize all involved elements and factors, and also in the content aspect, mobilize data towards achieving a unified purpose, and finally have a correct understanding of the timing of achieving objectives, we arrive at a native model that can be referred to as educational space-creation model. Undoubtedly, native educational models can have mechanisms that address the shortcomings of Western models in terms of their conflict with the internal philosophy of education. Although we are not independent of Western educational modeling in education, this does not mean we should ignore the depiction of native models based on our philosophical foundations of education.
According to this introduction, the advantages of this research plan can be enumerated as follows: a) Having a theoretical basis and presenting a model with a view to its intellectual and philosophical foundations; b) The comprehensiveness and applicability of the model in providing an operational pattern; c) Comprehensive utilization of educational elements and capacities towards achieving educational objectives; d) Meeting the higher-level objectives of the education system in the form of operational elements; e) Visualization and modeling of the depicted model in the form of scheduled work tables to facilitate the planning process for those in charge of education.
Finally, the practical findings of the research indicate that the major and minor objectives of religious, moral, and revolutionary education can be transformed into micro and multifaceted parameters within the framework of the model, and by utilizing all the capacities of the educational environment towards achieving educational goals, enrich both educational processes simultaneously. This model can serve as a pattern and model for all educational levels and subjects, as well as educational activities, although, due to the freedom of action in preschool levels and the existence of multiple educational capacities at these levels, this model is introduced in the present article for the preschool group. This requires determining goals, depicting the components of the educational space, and aligning and coordinating these two educational aspects. What still requires research and standardization is enriching the educational objectives in our model compared to other similar or Western models in practical and tangible educational spaces. Therefore, it is suggested that our model be compared with other educational models in the field and the experimental groups. This has been a limitation for the researchers of this model.