Development and Validation of a Scale for Measuring Post-modernistic Critical Pedagogy-based Curriculum Beliefs among Iranian EFL Teachers

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

Department of English, SR.C., Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran

Abstract

This study aimed to identify the foundational principles of a post-modernistic critical pedagogy-based (PMCP) curriculum and to develop and validate a scale measuring English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teachers’ beliefs about curriculum in the Iranian high school context. Grounded in the theoretical traditions of critical pedagogy and postmodern curriculum theory, the study was motivated by long-standing concerns about the ideological rigidity, cultural narrowness, and behaviorist orientation of the current national English curriculum. Drawing on PMCP principles such as learner empowerment, cultural inclusivity, dialogic learning, and ethical pluralism, the initial conceptual framework was constructed through a synthesis of relevant literature and semi-structured interviews with in-service Iranian EFL teachers. Based on this framework, a 35-item questionnaire was developed to measure teachers’ beliefs across four curriculum components: goals, content, methods, and assessment. A sequential exploratory mixed-methods design was employed to validate the scale. Content validity was confirmed through experts' review, while internal consistency was supported by Cronbach’s alpha (α= .898). Exploratory factor analysis yielded a five-factor solution, accounting for 77.79% of the total variance. Model fit indices confirmed the structural adequacy of the instrument. The validated scale offers a theoretically grounded and empirically robust tool for examining teachers’ curriculum beliefs within the Iranian school curriculum, thereby contributing to research and policy dialogue on a transformative curriculum reform in the centralized EFL education systems.

Keywords

Main Subjects

References

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Teaching English as a Second Language Quarterly
Volume 45, Issue 2
March 2026
Pages 23-52

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History

  • Receive Date: 05 May 2025
  • Revise Date: 29 December 2025
  • Accept Date: 04 January 2026

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