The fate of the young generation and the future of the country, which are dependent on the performance of teachers – the main implementers of educational programs – has become entangled. Teachers play a crucial role in the process of education and, as Jean Piaget, the famous contemporary psychologist, said, the most beautiful plan for reforming and reconstructing the educational system will fail if there are not enough teachers with the desired quality. (1) In any society, teachers can only fulfill their influential role in the educational process if they have a high social status and a strong social position; in other words, if they have a high social standing. The most suitable concept that encompasses elements of credibility, social status, and similar elements is the concept of symbolic capital. Symbolic capital refers to any type of asset (whether economic, cultural, social, etc.) that is recognized and valued by a group or society. (2) In other words, when one of the cultural, economic, human, or

First: In the past two decades, compared to other professions, guilds, and social groups, has the nominal capital of teachers been at a lower level? Second: What government policies in the field of education and training have resulted in a downward trend in the nominal capital of teachers in recent years compared to the past two decades?

Question: A study on the amount of capital of teachers compared to other professions.

In the past two decades, relatively extensive research has been conducted and interesting statistics have been presented that determine the level of symbolic capital and social credibility of political, social, and occupational groups in society. A study titled “Trust in Political-Social Groups” conducted in 1995 shows that 58% of people have little trust in political and social groups, and only 12% have complete trust. (5) Research conducted in 2000 and 2002 also shows significant statistics regarding symbolic capital of occupations and professions. The statistics show that people have more trust in professions such as teachers, professors, athletes, and doctors, while occupational groups like business owners and merchants have the lowest level of public trust. This study included 4,500 individuals aged 15 and above from different provinces in the country. Specifically, the statistics show that the level of trust in judges is around 35%, taxi drivers 20%, merchants and market vendors 10%, business owners 4%, and law enforcement

The results of another field research in 1389 (2010-2011) in the province of Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari show a significant decrease in the symbolic capital of teachers. However, the high rate of symbolic capital of teachers compared to other professions is also evident. The population of this study includes 612 individuals from the population over 18 years old in the central cities of six counties in Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari province. Statistics in this deprived province indicate a low level of public trust among citizens, with 79% of respondents having average to low levels of trust. Among different professions, teachers rank second with 43.1% of public trust, after doctors with 43.6%. The same statistics for clergy are 33%, merchants and traders 11.5%, political activists 13.7%, journalists 14.7%, and drivers 14.8%. These statistics show that the symbolic capital of different professions in developed and

B: Examining influential educational policies on reducing the symbolic capital rates of teachers.

As mentioned earlier, this writing only focuses on examining the factors of education and specifically the educational policies of governments in the past two decades. These policies, according to the writer, have had a significant impact on reducing the symbolic capital of teachers. These factors can generally be divided into three categories:

1- Profit-oriented attitudes towards education:

In the years following the war and with the implementation of economic adjustment policies, a targeted effort was made to reduce the education budget and increase profitability in the education structure of the country. A prominent example of such policies was the permission to establish non-profit schools and private educational centers. With the growth of credentialism in society and the interest of Iranian families in higher education for their children, a suitable ground was provided for non-profit schools to have more profitability. The continuation of these policies in subsequent governments led to the uncontrolled growth of these schools. Today, we are faced with a multitude of inefficient non-profit schools that, despite charging high tuition fees, have the least educational facilities. Some of these schools have even fewer facilities and opportunities than government schools, while extensive advertising creates the necessary conditions for attracting students to these schools. Some of these schools have simply turned into places for issuing diplomas in exchange for money. These issues have had a negative impact on the attitudes of Iranian families towards education and have called

2- Receiving tuition fees in public schools.

The Constitution of the Islamic Republic emphasizes on free education from elementary to higher levels. However, in the current situation, almost more than sixty percent of university opportunities require large tuition fees. On the other hand, in recent years, the management of public schools has been carried out through the money received from students’ parents. While educational officials reject any kind of payment during registration through official tribunes at the beginning of the school year, school administrators, under pressure from central offices, receive illegal tuition fees from students’ parents. This long-standing practice has taken on a more official appearance at the beginning of each new school year under the guise of modernizing schools. Sometimes, conflicts between students’ parents and school administrators over receiving extra fees during registration can be observed. On the other hand, direct receipt of money provides the groundwork for institutionalized corruption in schools. Discriminatory behaviors towards students and categorizing them based on the amount of money their parents have paid is another harmful consequence of this wrong and illegitimate

3- Educational Success Discourse

The main core of the discourse on academic success is the passing grade at the end of the year and acceptance in the university entrance exam. In this discourse, the desires and expectations of parents, managers, teachers, and ultimately students are not focused on fostering creativity – as one of the goals of the education system – which leads to academic success. Success, which is mainly measured by grades. On the other hand, the pressure of the education system on school managers to increase acceptance rates creates a fertile ground for serious damage in the educational process of students. School managers, under pressure from teachers at the end of each semester, request an increase in acceptance rates and resort to any means to prevent a decline in academic performance; from manipulating grades to continuously increasing students’ grades, all in the direction of increasing acceptance rates. In such conditions, and with the financial difficulties of teachers, the opportunity for buying and selling exam questions and obtaining passing grades is created, and students pass through the levels of education without any effort

Final words

Perhaps in a society like Iran, where materialistic values have replaced human values and moral beliefs, and the measure of social status is accumulating wealth at any cost, it may seem that talk of credibility and social status is futile and meaningless. This change in values has also affected a significant portion of the teaching community. According to a study conducted in 2010 among teachers in Borujen city, the ratio of individuals whose priorities are materialistic values compared to those who pay attention to non-materialistic and human values was almost two to one. This means that 75% of the teachers surveyed had materialistic values. However, these studies also show that the decline in social credibility and symbolic capital of teachers has negative effects on the educational system. Today, many traditional functions of the family have been transferred to educational institutions. As a result, the main role of educating the younger generation and transferring social values to them falls on schools and, consequently, teachers. Improving the efficiency and productivity of the education

Sources:

1- Safi, Ahmad, the image of a teacher, Tehran, Association of Parents and Educators of the Islamic Republic of Iran, 1374.

2- From Social Space to Social Capital, Saeed Attar, Institute for Humanities and Cultural Studies.

Research Journal of Social Sciences, Year 3, Issue 4, Winter 1388

4- Rafiepour, Farāmārz, Anomie or Social Disorganization, a Study on the Potential of Anomie in Tehran City, Soroush, Tehran, 1378 (1999).

5- Reliance on Political-Social Groups, Salman Safdari, Bachelor’s Thesis in Social Sciences, Faculty of Social Sciences, Allameh Tabatabai University, 1374.

Journal of Sociological and Cultural Studies, Institute for Humanities and Cultural Studies, First Year, Issue 1, Spring and Summer 1389, pp. 33-61.

7- Saqqafi, Morad and Tajbakhsh, Kian, Social Capital and Social Policies, Social Welfare Quarterly, Special Issue on Social Policy.

Journal of Applied Sociology, 21st year, issue 40, Winter 1381, pp. 97-122.

9- Iranian Journal of Social Studies, Volume 5, Issue 3, Autumn 1390