Curriculums in developed countries often contain materials aimed at strengthening social acceptance and increasing the social skills of children and students. Respect for traffic laws, preserving the environment and caring for the ecosystem, as well as teaching personal and public hygiene, are inseparable parts of education that are included in appropriate forms and formats for students of different ages in the content of lessons and education, as well as extracurricular and non-curricular activities in schools. General principles related to patriotism, respect for national symbols and efforts to defend the country are also present in the content of many educational systems.

But countries with ideological governments, especially totalitarian regimes, have turned schools and textbooks for children into a means of promoting their own government, just like the walls of cities. If we look at the walls of cities and administrative environments in countries with such governments, we will realize that, according to the rulers, radio, television, newspapers, and official media are not enough to convey their revolutionary message. For this reason, in order to make people understand and benefit from their ideological teachings, they also paint the walls of cities and put symbols of their government and the words of their leaders in front of people’s eyes, forcing them to see and read these messages every day.

In November 2020, news was released that China intends to include praising materials in support of the government and in relation to the country’s fight against the COVID-19 pandemic in school textbooks. According to the Ministry of Education of China, these materials will be added to biology, health and physical education, and Chinese history and literature textbooks for elementary and middle school levels, so that “students can better understand the reality that the well-being and safety of the people is always the top priority of the Communist Party and the government.” The Ministry of Education of China stated: “Students will become familiar with the main faces and actions taken to prevent and control the pandemic, and learn to increase public awareness and commitment and become more aware of the advantages of the Chinese socialist system.”

But in Iran, this year in the Social Studies textbook for ninth grade in the schools of the Islamic Republic, on page 52, the following has been added: “The Islamic Republic of Iran, with advanced health and medical facilities and a dedicated and hardworking medical staff, has been able to be among the top countries in treating the coronavirus. This is while in some Western countries, even the treatment of elderly patients was avoided.”

Although news was published some time later that there would be changes and removal of these topics in the next edition, firstly, this topic was not the first promotional topic of its kind and for years and decades, textbooks have been filled with such topics. Secondly, if the media’s focus and the government’s incompetence in handling the coronavirus issue were not present, not only would there be no news of the removal of this topic, but we would also witness the repetition and accumulation of such topics in the educational content for Iranian children.

The inevitable result of such actions in the first stage is the creation of mental turmoil in children and their confusion between reality and falsehood, especially in subjects where their families and society have contrary views to those promoted by the government in textbooks. Families have been faced with this important dilemma in the past few decades, trying to reconcile the lies in textbooks with the necessary realities for their children and explain them to their offspring. How to deal with some of the most common issues in their lives that have been interpreted as sins and mistakes in official educational content, so that the child can understand the subject and not face unpleasant situations with their teacher, principal, etc. in the school environment.

An ideological look at education and upbringing is itself the source of numerous other problems, perhaps the most significant of which is the deep divide between individual goals and systemic programs. The educational system aims to cultivate a specific individual and family, while society is pursuing another plan. One of these goals is to promote spiritual, moral, and religious growth and excellence, while the other is to achieve high grades in math and language and gain acceptance into certain schools and universities abroad! Whatever it may be, it has little connection to the lives of children today and does not contribute to their happiness, vitality, and problem-solving skills in this critical period of childhood. Despite numerous warnings and minor reforms in textbooks and educational materials, these lessons and books still do not teach children systematic thinking, but rather focus on memorization and transfer of mostly useless general knowledge to their memory. Iranian students still spend more time studying religion in schools and classes than their peers in developed countries, reviewing the histories and dynasties of governments and reciting