Mathew Zachariah

Comparative Educators and International Development Policy

I shall begin with the premise that it is unnecessary to traverse ground already covered many times by my distinguished American and European predecessors. There is little value in reviewing the origins of our field, the research alliances we may forge with disciplines in the humanities as well as the social sciences, and the institutionalized cooperation we must seek with other professionals in teacher education. There is nothing genuinely new I can say about the stages and processes of comparison or the pitfalls we must avoid when using the methods and techniques available to us. It is not necessary, again, to lament or legitimize the lack of consensus in theoretical focus in our research, teaching, or other practical activities. Finally, I find it difficult to sound alarmed about the future of our field, for reasons that should become evident later.