Designing a “Healthy Human Development” Curriculum Model Based on Iranian-Islamic Philosophy of Education with Emphasis on Students’ Active Lifestyle, Mental Health, and Moral Identity

Abstract

Objective: This study aimed to design a “Healthy Human Development” curriculum model grounded in Iranian-Islamic philosophy of education, with particular emphasis on students’ active lifestyle, mental health, and moral identity.

Methods and Materials: This qualitative study employed a grounded theory approach. Participants were experts from Tehran in Islamic philosophy of education, curriculum studies, educational psychology and mental health, physical education and sport sciences, ethics and Islamic education, and educational management and policymaking. A total of 20 participants were selected through purposive criterion-based sampling, and sampling continued until theoretical saturation was achieved. Data were collected through in-depth semi-structured interviews and analyzed concurrently with data collection. Open, axial, and selective coding, together with the constant comparative method, were used to analyze the data. Credibility and dependability were enhanced through participant checking, expert review, and systematic documentation of the analytical process.

Findings: Data analysis yielded 612 initial codes, which were reduced to 248 focused concepts, 42 subcategories, and 12 major categories. The central category was identified as “integrated development of a student characterized by physical-psychological balance, moral self-regulation, and a responsible lifestyle within an Iranian-Islamic identity framework.” Active lifestyle, mental health, and moral identity constituted the three core dimensions of the model, while “conscious and responsible self-regulation” emerged as the principal mechanism integrating these dimensions. Philosophical and value foundations, curriculum objectives, content, learning experiences, teaching-learning strategies, teacher and student roles, contextual and intervening conditions, assessment, and educational outcomes were also identified as major components of the final model.

Conclusion: The proposed model indicates that healthy human development requires an integrated curriculum that connects physical, psychological, and moral development within Iranian-Islamic educational philosophy and promotes self-regulation, agency, and responsibility to cultivate physically active, psychologically balanced, resilient, ethically responsible, and culturally grounded students.