Extended Abstract
Background and Purpose
Farhangian University has designed a comprehensive teacher training program consistent with established curriculum principles to fulfill its core educational mission effectively. This meticulously crafted program integrates a broad spectrum of foundational elements encompassing philosophical perspectives, social dynamics, cultural norms, psychological theories, and sociological considerations. Ensuring that these multifaceted components cohere seamlessly and function in a coordinated, feasible manner is critical for the program’s success and long-term sustainability.
Aligned with other national curricula, which collectively constitute the formal educational system of the country, the physical education curriculum pursues its mission through diverse and enriched methodologies. Central to its goals are foundational educational objectives such as fostering moral development, preserving and transmitting cultural heritage, nurturing a sense of responsibility, and promoting respect for others. Additionally, the curriculum emphasizes the importance of learning social order and societal rules, developing resilience when encountering failure, facilitating social adaptation, bolstering self-confidence, and encouraging self-regulation and control. Notably, these objectives find practical expression and realization through engagement in sports activities and physical education.
Similar to curricula in other disciplines, the physical education curriculum demands ongoing quality assessment and rigorous control mechanisms to ensure its objectives are met optimally. Consequently, it becomes essential to systematically examine all dimensions, components, and sub-elements of the curriculum to identify areas requiring revision, enhancement, or even fundamental restructure. The physical education curriculum at the university level is strategically designed to impart crucial knowledge, develop essential skills, and cultivate correct attitudes among students. However, realizing these aims depends heavily on principled implementation fidelity and the internal consistency among the curriculum’s components. Deficiencies or strengths within any single element can either retard or accelerate the overall implementation process. Therefore, detailed evaluation of each curriculum element is imperative to detect weaknesses or areas of excellence. Such analysis informs targeted interventions—whether to fortify strong components or resolve deficiencies—thereby optimizing the curriculum’s effectiveness and responsiveness to educational demands.
 
Methods
This research employed a qualitative approach rooted in phenomenological inquiry and systematic data-driven theorizing methodologies. Based on this framework, a physical education curriculum model tailored explicitly for Farhangian University was developed. The population under study consisted of all physical education professors and domain experts affiliated with Farhangian University nationwide. Inclusion criteria mandated possession of a doctoral degree and a minimum of ten years of professional experience in physical education, ensuring informed perspectives and deep expertise.
Data collection utilized a dual-method approach combining extensive library research with in-depth semi-structured interviews. These interviews were systematically implemented in three stages consistent with grounded theory coding strategies: open coding, axial coding, and selective coding. Purposeful snowball sampling was employed to progressively recruit knowledgeable participants, maximizing the richness and depth of insights. Data collection proceeded until a saturation point was reached, where no novel themes emerged, achieved after interviewing 15 participants.
During the initial open coding phase, key themes and statements extracted from interviews concerning the characteristics, strengths, and limitations of the physical education curriculum were coded and categorized. In the subsequent axial coding step, these initial codes underwent rigorous scrutiny for similarities, redundancies, and interrelations. The researcher consolidated overlapping codes into higher-order abstraction categories, thus reducing redundancy and refining thematic clarity while preserving the subtle nuance of participant input.
 
Results
Following the methodology outlined by grounded theory, the qualitative data were comprehensively analyzed through iterative coding cycles, culminating in the development of a nuanced conceptual framework. Five major thematic domains emerged distinctly from the interview data.
The causal factors theme incorporated the educational philosophy underpinning societal perspectives, foremost social values and norms, and the articulated social missions guiding educational practice. Contextual factors highlighted environmental aspects influencing curriculum implementation, including university organizational climate, prevailing leadership styles within university administration, and the degree to which professors serve as educational role models.
Intervening factors reflected the structural nature of the program, particularly its decentralized framework, the program’s responsiveness to professional characteristics, and a deliberate avoidance of excessively bureaucratic administrative structures that commonly hinder educational innovation.
The strategic thematic domain focused on tangible conditions and resources, such as the adequacy of existing sports facilities and infrastructure, the availability and allocation of financial resources, and the broader university ecosystem’s role in shaping curricular success.
Lastly, consequences concerned the tangible outcomes of the curriculum on students, including measurable increases in their sports-related knowledge, mastery of relevant skills, and the cultivation of positive attitudes toward physical education as an academic discipline and lifestyle choice.
 
Conclusion
The overriding objective of this study was to architect a comprehensive, evidence-informed physical education curriculum model bespoke for Farhangian University’s unique context. Findings established substantive, meaningful relationships among causal, contextual, intervening, strategic, and consequential variables within the emergent model, collectively illuminating how the curriculum operates and where adjustments are requisite.
The results unequivocally indicate that the current physical education curriculum demands comprehensive revision and enhancement. Such reform is necessary to more fully satisfy the diverse and evolving educational needs of university students. As academic curricula are instrumental in creating opportunities for the development of broad personal and professional competencies, identifying and rectifying curricular weaknesses is crucial. This process facilitates the removal of institutional and structural obstacles impeding university-level sports education and paves the way for positive, constructive changes within existing programs.
Achieving an effective and inclusive curriculum implementation strategy undeniably requires extensive, rigorous research to guide policymaking and execution. This ensures proper alignment and adaptation of university sports education to the shifting needs and expectations of society in progress. Notably, distinctive challenges were identified, including entrenched organizational cultures, administrative climates, leadership methodologies, professor role modeling, sports facility conditions, and financial constraints. These, along with factors influencing student knowledge acquisition, skill development, and attitude formation, define the complex landscape of university physical education. Addressing these unique and intertwined obstacles mandates sustained, purposeful strategic planning focused on long-term progressive development of university sports.
Article Message
The curriculum’s core structural elements—content, pedagogy, learning outcomes, and activities—remain critical yet manifest as persistent weaknesses to varying extents within the present physical education curriculum framework.
Ethical Considerations
All research activities conformed strictly to ethical standards relevant to sports management and educational research disciplines.
Authors’ Contributions
Equal contributions were made by all authors across research design, data acquisition, analytical processes, and manuscript development stages.
 Conflict of Interest
The authors declare that no conflicts of interest exist with respect to this publication.
 Acknowledgments
This article represents a portion of the first author’s doctoral dissertation. The authors sincerely acknowledge the invaluable support and contributions of all participants and collaborators throughout the research endeavor.