Can the Pandemic Build a Bridge Spanning the Theory-Practice Divide in Comparative and International Education?

Humanity has come to look up to education to take on any challenge encountered on its way. Consequently, a massive education expansion project commenced some seventy years ago. By 2020, however, this project had still been far from complete and far from being perfect. Deficiencies and shortcomings are salient on all three fronts of access to education, equality of education, and quality education. The ravages caused by the Covid-19 pandemic have also aggravated deficiencies in education worldwide and made it urgent to address shortcomings in education. The task’s urgency to rebuild education to its rightful place in the post-pandemic world means there is no room for experimentation. Nations should be learning from one another regarding their experience with education. The thesis of this study is that the scholarly field of comparative and international education is ideally suited to guide this exercise, but in order to live up to its potential, one major challenge that has beset the field for most of its history, namely the theoretical-practical divide, needs to be overcome. If the pandemic can succeed in effecting such a change, it will be to the benefit of both the field and education. In using comparative and international education to guide the post-pandemic education project, education in the BRICS countries has a pivotal role. If the articles in this volume can assist in developing a vision for a post-pandemic global education project, it will be, also as a starting point to get comparativists to enter the realm of education praxis, worth the endeavour

Países emergentes como taxón en Educación Comparada e Internacional

Scholars of the theoretical and methodological bases of the field of Comparative and International Education have for some time argued for the stronger use of supra-national levels of analysis in the field, and also for the consideration of new supra-national taxa rather than many of the problematic supra-national groupings freely used by scholars in the field.  This article argues the case for the emerging countries to be used as taxon in the field.  The article reviews the arguments for supra-national level of anlalyses as presented by theoreticians in the field, the present state of supra-national analyses and the taxa that are employed by scholars in the field.  The merits of developing a taxon of emerging countries is then argued.  The concept “emerging countries” as introduced by World Bank economist Antoine van Agtmael in 1981 is clarified, and since then has been elaborated a few times from different constituencies where the term had founded a favourable reception.  The authors then presents a tentative grouping, and outlining the societal contexts and education projects in these countries, and argue that these countries collectively present a particularly poignant education laboratory in the current world, worthy of being employed as taxon in the scholarly field of Comparative and International Education. Recommendations for sub-categories are also made.Estudiosos de las bases teóricas y metodológicas del campo de la Educación Comparada y la Educación internacional lleva algún tiempo abogando por un mayor uso de los niveles de análisis supranacionales y también por la consideración de nuevos taxones supranacionales, en lugar de muchas de las agrupaciones supranacionales problemáticas utilizadas libremente por los académicos en esta disciplina. Este artículo argumenta el caso de hacer uso de los países emergentes como taxón en ella. El artículo revisa los argumentos a favor del nivel supranacional de análisis tal como presentan teóricos especializados, el estado actual de los análisis supranacionales y los taxones que son empleados por académicos en el campo. Después, los méritos de desarrollar un taxón de países emergentes son discutidos. El concepto de «países emergentes» fue introducido por el economista del Banco Mundial Antoine van Agtmael en 1981 y, desde entonces, ha sido elaborado en pocas ocasiones en diferentes circunscripciones donde el término ha tenido una recepción favorable (Ver Van Agtmael, 2013). A continuación, el autor presenta una agrupación tentativa y describe los contextos sociales y los proyectos educativos en estos países, y argumenta que estos países se presentan colectivamente como un laboratorio educativo particularmente dinámico en el mundo actual, digno de ser empleado como taxón en el campo académico de los estudios comparativos e internacionales de la Educación. También se hacen recomendaciones para las subcategorías

Clarifying the Present State of and Trends in Comparative Education from an Analysis of Journal Articles

The aim of this research is to explicate the present state of and developments within the field of Comparative Education, by means of an analysis of articles published in Canadian and International Education and the Comparative Education Review, two eminent journals in the field. The following aspects of articles published in the two journals, since their inception till the end of 2006, were analyzed: levels of analysis of articles number of units covered by articles geographical areas which articles deal with modes of education articles deal with and themes/topics focused on. From the analysis, two features of the field became visible. On the one hand a striking consistency, on the other hand potential for a considerable broadening of levels of analysis, of geographical areas, and of modes of education. Theoreticians in the field make reasoned cases for such broadening, and articles analyzed revealed that incipient moves towards them are taking place. However, much scope for the expansion of the field along these lines exists. Some of these are pointed out. Cette recherche analyse plusieurs articles de deux revues éminentes, l’Education canadienne et Internationale et la revue Comparative Education Review dont le but sera d’expliquer l’état présent ainsi que l’évolution des recherches en Éducation Comparée. Les articles ont été choisis, depuis la création des revues jusqu’à la fin de 2006, sur la base des caractéristiques suivantes : Niveau d’analyse de l’article; Quantité d’éléments couverts par article; Zones géographiques visées par les articles ; Méthodologies éducatives visées par l’article; Thèmes/sujets analysés. L’analyse présente deux caractéristiques principales. D’un côté, il existe une consistance frappante, et de l’autre, un grand potentiel pour diversifier d’avantage les différents niveaux d’analyse, les zones géographiques, ainsi que les méthodologies éducatives visées. Les spécialistes du domaine acceptent cette diversification. Plusieurs articles analysés démontrent qu’un mouvement récent de diversification est en train de se développer. Les objectifs de développement doivent cependant être mieux définis. Quelques possibilités sont indiquées dans cet article

Recasting & Rethinking Education 01... in South Africa: Imperatives for making education more relevant, responsive, and authentic

The aim of this lead article is the setting of the frame of the Special Issue containing selected papers presented at the 2018 SAERA (South African Education Research Association) Annual Conference, with the theme “Education 01? In search of a new operating system: making education more relevant, responsive and authentic”. The article commences with an overview of the societal changes defining the early 21st century. It is suggested that, in light of these changes, education praxis, Education scholarship, and teacher education need to be re-designed, with relevance, responsiveness, and authenticity describing the critical changes required

The Scope of Education in the BRICS Countries as Theme for Comparative and International Education Scholarship

The key purpose of this study is to survey the BRICS education project, that is, education in the BRICS countries. The final objective is, fitting in the framework of this special issue, to identify the value of the epistemology that has been developed and tested by BRICS education scholars, as well as their thematic focus for the broader, global social science community. The unfolding 21st Century world and its imperatives for education are outlined. How this education-societal context is studied by the scholarly field of Comparative and International Education is then explained. The BRICS education project is then surveyed and analysed by a model which distinguishes between three dimensions of a national education project, namely the quantitative, the qualitative, and the equality dimension. It is concluded that the BRICS education project has a lot to offer in a global social science scholarship enterprise. However, to bring this promise to fruition, two recommendations are made. These are prioritisation of research on the societal outcomes of education in the BRICS countries, and that scholars in the BRICS countries should assume ownership for a scholarship of education in the BRICS countries

The BRICS Countries Grouping: Promise of a New Thematic and Methodological Research Focus in the Social Sciences and the Humanities

The aim of this research, as part of this Special Issue on the thematic and epistemological foci of social science and humanities research emanating in the BRICS countries, is to investigate and to assess the value of such research— firstly, for the BRICS countries mutually, then for the rest of the Global South as well as for the global humanities and social science community at large. The rationale of this research is that the BRICS countries have come to assume a growing gravitas in the world, not only on strength of geography, demography and economy; but also because of the diversity contained in each of these BRICS countries. These diversities offer opportunities to learn a lot from each other, in addition the rest of the gamut of countries in the Global South as well as the nations of the Global North can benefit much from learning from the experience of the BRICS countries. The research commences with a survey of the most compelling societal trends shaping the 21st Century world, which will form the parameters of the context in which scholarship in the social sciences and humanities are destined to be conducted. The state of scholarship in the humanities and the social sciences and the imperatives of context will be the next topic under discussion. Within this landscape, the potential role of research on BRICS soil is then turned to. The BRICS countries are surveyed, then a conclusion is ventured as to their potential as a fountainhead for social sciences and humanities research

New Thematic and Methodological Research Focus in the Social Sciences and the Humanities: The BRICS Countries Grouping

This is an Editoria

Is the Ideal of Universal Adult Literacy in the World by the Year 2030 Statistically Attainable?

The aim of this research is to determine how attainable the ideal of universal adult literacy is for the year 2030, projecting from current statistics and trends. After centuries and even millennia of slow growth, by the middle of the twentieth century the majority of the world’s adults were literate. From then on adult literacy levels rose sharp and feverish efforts were launched to eradicate adult illiteracy. Globally adult literacy levels are rising. However, projecting present trends into the future results in the prediction that by 2030 the global adult literacy level will still be 10 percent short of the level of universal adult literacy. Painting a bleaker picture is absolute number of adult illiterates globally. The problem can largely be pinned down to a few countries, and it is on these countries into which scholars and literacy efforts should zoom in

Dealing with incidents of serious disciplinary problems amongst learners: A comparative study between South Africa and selected countries

Teachers in South African schools battle with problems in learner discipline. Research indicates that teachers are at a loss as to handling these situations. The aim of this article is to survey incidents of serious learner misconduct in a representative selection of education systems abroad to extract any guidelines that might be applicable to South African schools. Eight education systems were surveyed: Brazil, England, Turkey, Singapore, Malaysia, China, Australia and New Zealand. The international systems surveyed in this article developed promising models, namely the National Safe Schools Framework (NSSF) in Australia, the Response Early Intervention and Assessment Community Health (REACH) programme in Singapore, the National Education Plan in the state of São Paolo, Brazil, and the two models in the category of positive disciplinary approaches in New Zealand, namely the Respectful Schools: Restorative Practices in Education and the New Zealand Minister of Education’s Positive Behaviour for [a] Learning Action Plan. A study of these international practices and underlying principles for dealing with discipline in pedagogical situations (Christian or secular) could provide guidelines for South African teachers and education authorities