Maria Manzon

Comparative education : the construction of a field

This book addresses the problem of why the intellectual and institutional trajectories of this field diverge. Employing sociological analysis and philosophical argumentation, it examines the literature on the fields intellectual definitions and histories, obtained largely from three major international surveys covering 52 countries, complemented by interviews with 28 comparative education society leaders.

Does Context Still Matter? The Dialectics of Comparative Education.

This introductory article serves as a hermeneutical tool for interpreting the subsequent articles in this special issue, which explores the nature and roles of comparative education in the 21st century within the context of a changing world order and the growing prominence of comparative education in the Asia-Pacific region. A review of the evolution of different genres of comparative educations reveals the importance of contextual considerations as a constant ritornello (a refrain or instrumental interlude) in comparative education research. Reflections on comparative education in dialectical perspectives in this article provide new impetus and enlightenment on contemporary issues in education and society. Seeing comparative education as a dialectic process enhances the openness of comparative education to challenge the status quo perception of issues, and provides a compare-and-contrast perspective to identify polemic interpretations, such as empirical epistemology which can be viewed as a subjectivity that rejects the transcendental sources of knowledge. Dynamic secularism can be a friend of, and coexist with, religion as it ironically provides more opportunities for more religions to co-exist harmoniously under secularism than many countries that adopt a national religion. The dialectics of comparative education opens up a new role for comparative education to accommodate polemic perspectives to co-exist and to recognize the equal importance of universality and particularity.

Comparing the Comparers: Patterns, Themes and Interpretations

The histories in this book are set within their wider contexts, partly echoing works on disciplinary histories and sociology of the social sciences such as Graham et al. (1983) and Wagner et al. (1991). Taking the comparative education societies and the umbrella global body as the units of analysis, this book demonstrates that professional and scholarly associations are windows on the wider communities that they serve. At the same time, broader forces in political, academic and other domains shape the sizes, structures and activities of these societies. This chapter examines relationships between the broader environment and the professional bodies. Using insights from the preceding chapters, the chapter identifies some patterns and themes from the main body of the book, and in a sense compares the comparers. It begins with conceptual literature on disciplinary institutionalisation and scholarly networking before turning to the specifics of the comparative education societies. It includes comments on society formation and names, which are themselves linked to the ways in which the societies have been founded, positioned themselves and recruited members. The chapter again emphasises the diversity of patterns within the common framework.

The Institutionalization of Comparative Education in Asia and the Pacific: Roles and Contributions of Comparative Education Societies and the WCCES.

The institutional framework of the field of comparative education has developed significantly in recent decades. One manifestation of development has been the establishment and activities of professional societies. This paper focuses on 12 societies that operate in Asia and the Pacific. Some of these societies have long histories while others are recent creations. The paper considers the geographic and conceptual remits of these societies, and their activities including organization of conferences and publication of journals. Patterns are viewed through the lenses of literature on intellectual fields and on academic tribes and territories.

Origins and traditions in comparative education: challenging some assumptions

ABSTRACT This article questions some of our assumptions about the history of comparative education. It explores new scholarship on key actors and ways of knowing in the field. Building on the theory of the social constructedness of the field of comparative education, the paper elucidates how power shapes our scholarly histories and identities.

Comparative education as a field in Asia: retrospect and prospect

Abstract Comparative education in Asia is witnessing changing discourses, structural opportunities, and invigorated leadership. This article will review the institutionalization of comparative education in Asia from a sociological perspective, drawing on Bourdieu’s theory on the logic of social practice. After giving an overview of the historical roots of Asian comparative education, I will describe broadly its landscape noting developments in the last two decades since 1995, the foundational year of the Comparative Education Society of Asia (CESA). Four main themes are explored: comparative education teaching, professional societies, research centres, and specialist publications. With a baseline understanding of the infrastructures of the field in Asia and the power dynamics that shape them, I will propose an agenda for Asian comparative education to offer meaningful contributions to multipolar knowledge production in the field. Priority themes and directions will be highlighted to articulate a stronger Asian voice and leadership in an increasingly diverse and uncertain world.

Andreas Kazamias: Socratic Gadfly of Comparative Education

Transposing “the state” with “comparative education” in the preceding text, it is effortless to visualize Kazamias uttering these words with all the energy he can muster. My personal acquaintance with Professor Kazamias has been brief yet dramatic. Although I had devoted years of my research apprenticeship at the University of Hong Kong to re-theorizing the histories of comparative education and had read some of his classic writings, I had not met him until 2014. Our first encounter took place in Freiburg, German during a conference of the Comparative Education Society in Europe (CESE). From the very first plenary session, Kazamias exemplified a Socratic gadfly. His animated interventions—with his powerful voice and Mediterranean aura—drove home the loud and clear message that comparative education ought to have a soul! This made such an impression on me and played like a ritornello in my mind. As I write this tribute to him, I remembered something I said about the prospects of comparative education in Asia that reverberates with his thinking:

Comparative Education Histories: A Postscript.

ABSTRACT Comparative education is two centuries old. Many mainstream historical narratives claim that the field began with the iconic opus of Marc-Antoine Jullien de Paris (1817). This article offers to re-theorise the histories of comparative education. It suggests casting a far-sighted and panoramic look at the field’s origins. An underlying assumption in these histories is the embeddedness of comparative education in ever-changing world orders. The article concludes with a puzzle for future work on a global history of comparative education.

CIEclopedia: Profiling Distinguished Society Leaders

CIEclopedia is a who’s who website database for comparative and international education. It was established in 2006 as an initiative of Teachers College, Columbia University. The project was supported by the Comparative and International Education Society (OES) and was launched on the occasion of the Society’s 50th anniversary celebrations. lhis chapter explores the nexus between CIEclopedia and OES leadership. It commences with a brief introduction on the nature and role of who’s who publications. It then gives a history of CIEclopedia, explores developments over time, and takes stock of achievements after a decade of existence.

Reconstructing Comparative Education

This book has investigated the problem of what comparative education is and how it came to be constructed as a field. Adopting a philosophical and sociological approach, the study sought to understand the institutional and intellectual shaping of academic comparative education by epistemological, as well as structural, agency-oriented and discursive forces. This section recapitulates the essential arguments and proposes a theorisation of the relationship between the institutional and intellectual re-shaping of comparative education in terms of a ‘quasi-discursive’ construction of the field.