Download Comparative education research

Comparative Education Society of Nepal
Sharing series – 2
Comparative Education Research:
Direction for Change
Mahesh Nath Parajuli
August 2015
This presentation
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Introduction on comparative perspective and
comparative education research
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Arguments:
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need for bringing localized perspective in
comparative education/development studies
for theorizing based on local processes
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need for contributing towards fulfilling
cultural gap in education
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Comparative perspective
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Comparison for understanding and sharing
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Understanding strengths and weaknesses
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societies, nations, cultures, processes
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comparison across time and space
Realize the variations across and within
cultures and nations
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Comparative perspective – expressed or
implicit
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Comparative perspective
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Long tradition of comparative perspective
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our parables and fables (Panchatantra) use
comparative perspective through metaphors
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Metaphor – the story of snake and rope
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nachna najanne aangan tedho
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song – ‘himal, pahad, taraiko desh hamro
sansarmai ramro’
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Vedic text - the concept of prakriti and
purusha illustrate comparative perspective
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Comparative research
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Comparative research is for
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finding pattern, trends, categorization
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identifying problems, problem areas
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finding solutions of those problems
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seeing effects of programs
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contextualization – increasingly in practice
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unique perspective – being called for
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Comparative concerns
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Are societies comparable?
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Are data comparable?
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Can there be common understandings on
constructs, variables/themes?
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Individual or team of researchers?
The solution: standardization of variables/
themes and data
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Still problem, because of contextual variations
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Comparative education – a field of study
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French educator – first comparativist, 1817
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Different understanding
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by different people
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in different areas
Differences are mainly on
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area/levels of comparison
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units of comparison
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methods of comparison
A debate of little value?
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Comparative methods
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No different methods for comparative studies
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International comparative studies - large scale,
cross-national surveys are common
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National or international
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well-structured, standardized
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secondary, primary data
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descriptive, correlational, explanatory
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multi-stage: first case, then survey; first
survey, then case; some other combination
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Comparative methods
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Contextualized approaches are also important
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Emphasis on uniqueness or specificity and on
exploring the reasons, meanings, implications
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searching for multiple explanations
Interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary
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political studies
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social and cultural studies
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developmental studies
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educational studies
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Comparative theories
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Similar trend as in other field of studies
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1950s-70s – Functionalists and positivist;
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modernization of education system
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cultural/historical perspectives (weak form)
1970s onwards – critical approaches – Marxism,
Neo Marxism – interpretive and humanist
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1990s onwards – post-foundational – postmodern, post-structural, post-colonialism
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(Ninnes & Mehta, 2004)
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Comparative education – a field of study
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Comparative education
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comparison of national systems of education
International education
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describing and analysing situations in one or
more countries and making proposals for one
or more countries
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International development / development studies
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changing socio-economic and political context
in developing countries
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Comparative education
Increasing international
understanding through
diversity of cross-national
and cross-cultural
studies/activities
Comparative
education
Development
studies
International
education
Extended dialogue between
ideas and evidence (Ragin)
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Emphasis on examining
and explaining
educational systems and
cultural practices
Source: Evans & Robinson-Pant, 2010
Emphasis on contextualized
understandings of change
with development aims of
(eg) poverty reduction
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Comparative educational research
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Research with the purpose of seeing in
educational processes and phenomena
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patterns and trends; and uniqueness
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building theory on the basis of what is
happening
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borrowing from theory to explain what is
happening
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explaining and addressing the concerns
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Time
Comparative cubes
Time
Source: Bray & Thomas, 1995, as cited in Bray, Adamson, & Mason, 2014
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Comparative education – is it a clear field?
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A question often asked
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comparative education a clear field of study?
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what contribution?
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bringing some pieces together and by seeing
their similarities and differences?
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same thing on international education
High popularity of comparative / international
education journals, books, research works, etc.
reject this blame
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Comparative education in Nepal
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Comparative perspective has been there
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not in an explicit manner
Practice of carrying out education and other
research/survey across different geographic
and socioeconomic groups and presenting
data/analysis on these bases
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International education and other studies with
Nepal as one of the study country
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Comparative education in Nepal
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Hugh B Wood, 1965, with ‘Comparative’ in title,
probably the first such work
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An article with comparative perspective, 2010,
in Compare (40th year issue), by M Parajuli,
MWagley - in an international journal
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Comparative works (by Nepali and non-Nepali
writers) in national/international comparative
conferences, journals, books
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Comparative Education Society of Nepal
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Comparative Education Society of Nepal
(CESON) in 2013 – the first in Nepal
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a professional organization
Understanding how education, a key social
process, interacts with other social processes
like development, politics, culture, economy, etc.
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Develop comparative perspectives in education
aiming to contribute to social transformation
through knowledge building and sharing
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Comparative Education Society of Nepal
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Website (ceson.org.np) – CESON Forum
([email protected] [email protected])
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CESON Sharing Sessions
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One international symposium in 2014
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Planning for the First CESON conference in 2016
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Aiming to organize CESA conference in 2018
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discourse and debate
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knowledge building
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policy contribution
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Challenges and opportunities
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Globalization
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growing marketization
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blurring of national boundaries
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homogenizing cultures
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Internet and computing revolution
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Access to data and information
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Growing comparative research and publication
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Increasing multi-disciplinarity
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Challenges and opportunities
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World is facing several challenges
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poor life quality
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inequity, discrimination, and exclusion
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war and conflict
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deteriorating physical environment
How comparative education research address
these concerns?
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Research and theorizing – localized and grand
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Localizing the comparative perspective
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The need for localizing the research
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local everyday perspective and cultural
values
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Theorizing on the basis of local research
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Contributing towards social justice and
transformation
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The need for looking into historical, local
treasure of knowledge and wisdom
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Localizing the comparative perspective
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Fulfilling the gap – the cultural gap
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in education
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in development
Highly diverse people and their context
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different learning styles and strategies
Unbelievably isomorphic schooling and
development policy and practice
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Culturally incompatible schooling/education and
development
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Localizing the comparative perspective
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Building synergy with international perspective
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Agency and actor oriented perspective
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willingness to act upon and contest
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capability to build
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networking
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resilience and contestations
Developing local comparativists for developing
localized frame and perspective
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References
Bray, M., Adamson, B., & Mason, M. (2014). Comparative education research:
Approaches and methods. Hong Kong: Comparative Education Research Centre and
Springer.
Evans, K. & Robinson-Pant, A. (2010). Compare: Exploring a 40-year journey through
comparative education and international development. Compare: A Journal of
Comparative and International Education. 40(6), 693-710.
Ninnes, P. & Mehta, S. (2004). A meander through the maze: Comparative education
and post-foundational studies. In P.Ninnes & S. Mehta (Eds.). Re-imagining
comparative education: Postfoundational ideas and applications for critical times
(pp. 1-18). New York: RoutledgeFalmer.
Parajuli, M.N. & Wagley, M. P. (2010). Comparative education and development:
Reflections from Nepal. Compare: A Journal of Comparative and International
Education. 40(6), 835-840.
Wood, H.B. (1965). The development of education in Nepal - Studies in comparative
education. Bulletin 1965, No 5, Office of Education, Washington, D.C. ERIC
document no ED 164375.
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