National identity is widely recognized as a foundational element of social and cultural cohesion, and educational systems, particularly at the primary level, play a significant role in transmitting and reinforcing its components among young learners.
Textbooks are among the main vehicles of this process, and their illustrations are especially important because they convey cultural values, beliefs, and symbolic meanings in an indirect, durable, and age-appropriate manner.
In the context of the Islamic Republic of Iran, formal education has consistently been used as a key instrument for shaping and consolidating national identity.
This study therefore examines the Persian language textbooks (Bekhanim) used in Iranian primary schools during the 2010s (1390–1399 Solar Hijri) to investigate how the components of national identity are visually represented, which components are emphasized more strongly, and how these representations operate across Fairclough’s three levels of description, interpretation, and explanation.
The research adopts Norman Fairclough’s framework of Critical Discourse Analysis as its theoretical and analytical lens and employs a qualitative, descriptive-analytical design.
The data consist of illustrations from all six volumes of the Persian textbooks for grades 1 through 6 published during the 2010s. Using purposive sampling, images were selected that explicitly or implicitly contained signs, symbols, or references related to national identity.
At the description level, formal visual features such as color, composition, characters, setting, and symbols were documented. At the interpretation level, the relationship between each illustration’s meaning and its accompanying text, pedagogical context, and wider discursive practices within the educational system was examined.
At the explanation level, the identified patterns were linked to official educational policies, the Fundamental Reform Document of Education, and the institutional framework of curriculum development.
The analysis revealed systematic patterns in the representation of national identity components across the textbooks. Religious values, including scenes of prayer, mosques, Quranic references, and veiling, socio-moral concepts such as helping others, respect for elders, and patriotism expressed through flags and martyrs’ imagery, and cultural-historical symbols such as Nowruz appeared frequently and were present in most of the analyzed illustrations.
By contrast, ethnic and cultural diversity, modern or global dimensions of national identity, and the Persian language itself were significantly less represented.
The Persian language appeared almost exclusively within written texts and calligraphy exercises; in illustrations, it was visible mainly as written words on blackboards or signs rather than as a spoken or symbolic visual motif.
Ethnic diversity was depicted in only a limited number of images, and when present, it tended to be stereotypical or superficial.
Differences across grade levels were also evident: in grades 1 through 3, identity components were represented directly and explicitly, for example through a child performing prayers or a clear depiction of the national flag, whereas in grades 4 through 6, representations became more symbolic, indirect, and interpretively demanding.
A clear division of labor emerged between textual and visual content: the written text carried the primary burden of linguistic identity formation, including Persian grammar, spelling, and reading comprehension, while illustrations primarily conveyed religious and moral socialization.
The findings indicate a consistent alignment between the visual discourse of the textbooks and the official educational discourse of Islamic-Iranian identity.
At the descriptive level, formal features such as bright and positive color schemes for religious scenes, as well as the limited or absent depiction of non-Persian ethnic attire, reflect a hierarchy of valued identity components.
At the interpretive level, the graded difference in representation corresponds to assumptions about students’ cognitive and developmental stages: lower grades rely on direct and unambiguous images to facilitate the internalization of core values, while higher grades use more symbolic and indirect representations that may be intended to encourage interpretive skills.
At the explanatory level, the underrepresentation of ethnic diversity, modern or global elements, and the Persian language in illustrations reflects institutional priorities embedded in national curriculum policies and textbook production guidelines.
Although Persian is a central pillar of Iranian national identity, it is addressed mainly through textual exercises rather than visual celebration.
Overall, the textbooks rely heavily on religious and historical symbolism while offering only limited representation of internal heterogeneity or external contemporary influences.
These patterns may affect how students from different ethnic or linguistic backgrounds perceive their place within the national narrative.
In conclusion, the illustrations in Persian primary school textbooks from the 2010s do not present a fully balanced or comprehensive portrayal of Iranian national identity; instead, they selectively emphasize religious values, socio-moral norms, and canonical historical symbols while giving less attention to ethnic diversity, modern and global dimensions, and visual references to the Persian language.
Fairclough’s framework proves useful for showing that these patterns are systematic and correspond to the official educational discourse and institutional policies of the period.
The textbooks thus function as instruments for the gradual, grade-appropriate cultivation of a specific and officially favored version of national identity rather than a full reflection of the cultural, linguistic, and social diversity of Iranian society.