Comparative education: Difference between revisions
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The history of <i>comparative education</i> was reviewed<sup>[http://pocketknowledge.tc.columbia.edu/home.php/viewfile/download/5948 1]</sup> by David N. Wilson in 2003. In this work he defines <b>comparative education</b> as |
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<i>an intersection of the social sciences, education and cross-national study which attempts to use cross-national data to test propositions about the relationship between education and society and between teaching practices and learning outcomes</i> |
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while defining its "twin", <b>international education</b>, as |
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<i>the application of descriptions, analyses and insights learned in one or more nations to the problems of developing educational systems and institutions in other countries</i> |
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<b>Why is comparative education or "comp ed" germane to the OLPC project?</b> Because it provides a rich scholarly archive of educational culture "ethnographies" through which we can better understand the target markets. |
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In his review, Wilson notes the ancient roots of comparative and international education: |
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<i>Writers since the beginning of recorded history have described |
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aspects of education in countries they visited, with the notion |
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that the educational structures and practices they examined |
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might be useful for adoption and adaptation in their own countries... Such works include the philosophical and rhetorical treatises on education by Herodotus (484-425 BC), Thucydides (471-399 BC), Xenophon (430-355 BC), Plato (427-347 BC), Aristotle (384-322 BC), Cicero (106-43 BC), Scipio Africanus (185-129 AD), and Tacitus (70 AD) from ancient Greece and Rome; the descriptive and narrative accounts of Rabbi Benjamin of Tudela from pre-Inquisition Spain (1165-1173 AD), who voyaged as far as India; Niccolò and Maffeo Polo (the father and uncle of Marco Polo) writing about China (1254-1324 AD); and Abd al-Rahman Ibn Khaldun (1332-1406 AD) of Tunisia.</i> |
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</blockquote> |
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But modern study dates only from the early 19th century. Wilson takes note of several milestones from that foundation: |
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* Basset (1808) and Jullien (1817) are "credited with the introduction of the scientific study of education from a comparative perspective" |
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* First comp ed univ course (1899) |
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* Comp ed enters its "scientific" era (1900) |
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* 1st Western textbook on comp ed (1918) |
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* Intl Bureau of of Ed (IBE), 1st int'l org in ed sector (1925) |
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* IBE joins UNESCO (1948) |
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* CES, 1st comp ed society (1956) |
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* WCCES, world council of comp ed societies (1970) |
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==References== |
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1. Wilson, David N. (2003). <i>The Future of Comparative And International Education in a Globalized World</i>. <i>International Review of Education</i> 49(1-2): 15-33 |
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Revision as of 22:54, 18 December 2006
The history of comparative education was reviewed1 by David N. Wilson in 2003. In this work he defines comparative education as
an intersection of the social sciences, education and cross-national study which attempts to use cross-national data to test propositions about the relationship between education and society and between teaching practices and learning outcomes
while defining its "twin", international education, as
the application of descriptions, analyses and insights learned in one or more nations to the problems of developing educational systems and institutions in other countries
Why is comparative education or "comp ed" germane to the OLPC project? Because it provides a rich scholarly archive of educational culture "ethnographies" through which we can better understand the target markets.
In his review, Wilson notes the ancient roots of comparative and international education:
Writers since the beginning of recorded history have described aspects of education in countries they visited, with the notion that the educational structures and practices they examined might be useful for adoption and adaptation in their own countries... Such works include the philosophical and rhetorical treatises on education by Herodotus (484-425 BC), Thucydides (471-399 BC), Xenophon (430-355 BC), Plato (427-347 BC), Aristotle (384-322 BC), Cicero (106-43 BC), Scipio Africanus (185-129 AD), and Tacitus (70 AD) from ancient Greece and Rome; the descriptive and narrative accounts of Rabbi Benjamin of Tudela from pre-Inquisition Spain (1165-1173 AD), who voyaged as far as India; Niccolò and Maffeo Polo (the father and uncle of Marco Polo) writing about China (1254-1324 AD); and Abd al-Rahman Ibn Khaldun (1332-1406 AD) of Tunisia.
But modern study dates only from the early 19th century. Wilson takes note of several milestones from that foundation:
- Basset (1808) and Jullien (1817) are "credited with the introduction of the scientific study of education from a comparative perspective"
- First comp ed univ course (1899)
- Comp ed enters its "scientific" era (1900)
- 1st Western textbook on comp ed (1918)
- Intl Bureau of of Ed (IBE), 1st int'l org in ed sector (1925)
- IBE joins UNESCO (1948)
- CES, 1st comp ed society (1956)
- WCCES, world council of comp ed societies (1970)
References
1. Wilson, David N. (2003). The Future of Comparative And International Education in a Globalized World. International Review of Education 49(1-2): 15-33