A Multi-Level Analysis of Transition Pathways for Education System: From Traditional to Competency-Based Education

Despite shifts in society’s institutional demands on the Iranian education system, along with transformative efforts by educational activists and numerous policy interventions by relevant authorities, no significant change has yet been observed in the foundations of the system's industrial education paradigm. A review of the related literature suggests that understanding the reasons behind these persistent failures and analyzing alternative pathways forward lie beyond the scope of mono-disciplinary research and sectoral approaches to education. This study adopts a multi-level perspective (MLP) derived from transition studies—an emerging transdisciplinary field—to analyze the key driving and inhibiting factors influencing the transformation of the education system. A qualitative case study design is employed. Data were collected through a review of relevant documents and articles, as well as semi-structured interviews with 19 experts from the educational institution. The findings identify ‘de-alignment and re-alignment’ and ‘reproduction’ as the most probable transition pathways within this system. The paper concludes by offering policy solutions and recommendations tailored to each pathway to overcome the locked-in state of transformation in the education system.