Journal of Research in Educational Systems

Abstract The purpose of the present study is to design an integrative model based on Philosophy for Children (P4C) and Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK) to enhance the quality of primary education in Iran. These two approaches respectively emphasize fostering critical and caring thinking through philosophical dialogue and improving teachers’ ability to connect subject content with appropriate teaching strategies. The main problem addressed in this research is the lack of localized and integrative frameworks in primary education for the simultaneous development of students’ cognitive, moral, and conceptual skills.



This study adopts a qualitative and applied research design employing the Design-Based Research (DBR) methodology. Data were collected through document analysis, theoretical framework review, and semi-structured interviews with 10 experts in the field of education. Thematic analysis was used to examine the collected data.



Based on the findings, an integrative model was designed comprising six core components: objectives, content, teaching strategies, teacher’s role, learner’s role, and assessment methods. The proposed model was validated by experts and demonstrated the potential to effectively combine content-based instruction with the cultivation of students’ thinking skills.



Furthermore, the model promotes dialogue-centered classrooms, enhances meaningful learning, and fosters active student participation. Given its flexibility, the model is adaptable to localized contexts and can be widely implemented in concept-oriented subjects in primary education. It can also serve as a practical guide for teachers, curriculum designers, and teacher training programs seeking to integrate philosophical inquiry with pedagogical content knowledge in the classroom.

Abstract Objective: Overloaded curriculum is an emerging and complex phenomenon in the field of curriculum, which is considered a necessity for every educational system. Prevention of this issue requires a comprehensive investigation in terms of dimensions and characteristics; Therefore, the current research was conducted with the aim of identifying the dimensions and features of the Overloaded curriculum in the primary school.
Methods: The approach of qualitative research and its method was a systematic review based on the seven-step strategy of Wright et al (2007). The research community consisted of 71 studies that were collected from valid internal and external databases in the period of (2000-2023) and after quality assessment, 38 articles were selected and analyzed through coding.Results: The findings of the research showed that the overloaded curriculum has three dimensions: individual, organizational and educational. The individual dimension, including hoarding of content by subject experts, threatening the physical and mental health of students, job burnout of teachers, creating a dual status for principals and changing the role of teachers and parents; The educational dimension includes the excessive amount of goals, adding new content without reducing the previous content, multiple assignments and activities, time limit and multiple and time-consuming evaluations, and the organizational dimension including hasty decisions without research support, a tool look at the curriculum to achieve political goals and Social was the volume of curriculum documents and numerous plans and programs.
Conclusion: The results showed that the overloaded curriculum is a multidimensional phenomenon, the prevention of which requires attention to curriculum elements, stakeholders, and organizational decisions.