bob adamson 0311
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Comparative Education
Research: Who, what and why?
Prof Bob Adamson
Dep't of International Education & Lifelong LearningHong Kong Institute of Education
badamson@ied.edu.hk
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Comparative Education
A field constructed by:
Intellectual traditions (courses, books, journals)
Institutional traditions (departments, societies)
Shaped by geopolitics, historical shifts, power plays
(Manzon, 2011)
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A brief history
Travellers tales (early 19th Century)
Borrowing good practices (mid 19th Century onwards)
Encyclopaedic studies (late 19th Century)
Understanding forces and factors (early 20th Century)
Social sciences quantitative analysis (mid 20th Century)
Intranational comparisons (1990s-)
Multilevel & multidisciplinary analyses (21st
Century)
Bereday(1964), Noah & Eckstein (1969), Crossley & Jarvis (2000), Bray (2007)
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Focus
Traditionally, states as the unit of comparison
Borrowing good practices
Competitiveness
Recently, more units of analysis have broadened
(diluted?) the field
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Units of analysis (1)
Content analysis of
Alexander, R., Broadfoot, P. & Phillips, D. (Eds.) (1999). Learning from comparing: new
directions in comparative educational research. Oxford, UK: Symposium Books.
Bignold, W. & Gayton, E. (Eds.) (2009). Global issues and comparative education. Exeter,
UK: Learning Matters.
Bray, M., Adamson, B. & Mason, M. (Eds.) (2007). Comparative education research
approaches and methods. Hong Kong & Dordrecht, Netherlands: Comparative Education
Research Centre & Springer.
Kubow, P.L. & Fossum, P.R. (2002). Comparative education: Exploring issues in
international context. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Merrill/Prentice Hall.
Mundy, K., Bickmore, K., Hayhoe, R., Madden, M., & Madjidi, K. (Eds.) (2008).Comparative and international education : issues for teachers. Toronto, Ont.: Canadian
Scholars' Press.
Thomas, R.M. (Ed.) 1990. International comparative education. Oxford, UK: Pergamon
Press.
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Units of analysis (2)
locations
systems policies
times
cultures
values, conflict resolution & citizenship
educational achievements, international indicators & student performance curricula
educational organisations, governance & accountability
ways of knowing & learning
ways of teaching
economics of education
assessment
teacher education & professionalism
ideologies, goals & purposes of education
social equity and access to education
language in education
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Bray & Thomas (1995) Cube
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Who compares? And why?
Students to select electives
Parentsto find institutions that will meet their childrensneeds most effectively
Principals and teachers to improve the operation of theirinstitution
Policy makers to find ways to achieve social, political andother objectives in their own settings
International agencies to improve the advice they give to
national governments
Academics to improve understandings of educationalprocesses and impacts of processes on socialdevelopment
(Bray, 2007; Adamson & Morris, 2007)
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Research approaches
There is no one method of study in the field:
rather, the field increasingly is characterized
by a number of different researchorientations. No longer are there attempts to
define a single methodology of comparative
education
(Altbach & Kelly, 1986, p.1)
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Major characteristic of research
Explicit comparison through different forms of
juxtaposition
Implicit comparisondescribing the characteristics
of a single phenomenon implies the existence of an
otherness
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How can we compare?
Perspective
Unit of Analysis Manifestation
Methods
Analytical frameworks
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How can we compare?
Research perspective:
Investigative
Evaluative
Interpretative
Critical
Developmental / action-based
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How can we compare?
Research methods:
Qualitative
Quantitative
Mixed methods
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Manifestations
Area Typical manifestations Typical research methods
Ideology books
academic papers
policy documents
speeches & statements
discourse analysis
interviews
Planned/ intended policy policy documents
minutes of meetings
notices
syllabuses
prospectuses
learning materials
schemes of work/ lesson plans
assessment materials
discourse analysis
interviews
Enacted practices participant interaction (e.g. use of time and
resources)
roles of participantsparticipant perceptions, interest and
engagement
interaction patterns
outputs
observations
participants log
interviewsethnography
activity records
Experience change in participants attitude and/or
behaviour
cognitive, interpersonal and affectiveprocesses
questionnaires
interviews
reflectionspsychometric tests
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Beredays Model
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Examples of comparative education research
OECD Programme for International
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OECD Programme for International
Student Assessment (PISA)
Investigative perspective
surveys of 15-year-olds in the principal industrialised
countries every three years assesses how far students near the end of compulsory
education have acquired some of the knowledge and
skills essential for full participation in society
Scientific literacy, reading literacy, mathematics literacy
Influences policy and curricular decisions
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PISA 2009
Mathematics Reading literacy Science
1. Shanghai 600 1.Hong Kong 533 1.Shanghai 575
2. Singapore 562 2.Singapore 526 2. Finland 554
3. Hong Kong 555 3.Canada 524 3.Hong Kong 549
4. Korea 546 4.New Zealand 521 4. Singapore 542
5. Finland 541 5.Japan 520 5. Japan 539
6.Switzerland 534 6. Australia 515 6. Korea 538
Culture & Pedagogy
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Culture & Pedagogy
(Alexander, 2000)
Interpretive perspective
Compares primary schools in France, Russia, India, USA
and England
Semi-systematic classroom observations, plus interviews,documentary analysis, photos and journal entries
State provision of education, logistics, school-community
relations, pedagogy
Shows how schooling reflects cultures Derives implications for policy makers
Curriculum world systems theory
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Curriculum world systems theory
Meyer, Kamens & Benavot (1992)
Interpretative perspective
Nation-states tend to conform to global notions of a
nation-state
Education systems tend to conform to global notions of
an education system
Consistent patterns in curriculum content (subject level)
emerge across nation-states
Common elementary curriculum
Task based learning
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Task-based learning
Tong, Adamson & Che (2000)
Interpretative perspective
Document analysis and interviews
Comparison of interpretations of TBL in Chinese and
English at primary school level in Hong Kong
Comparison at four levels: policy intention, policy action,resourced curriculum & implemented curriculum
Found large degree of slippage between levels and
differences across the two subjects
Textbook analysis
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Textbook analysis
Sleeter & Grant (1991)
Critical perspective
USA: portrayals of race, class, gender & disability
47 textbooks (social studies, reading & languagearts, science, mathematics
analysis of pictures, anthology, people to study,
language, storyline and miscellaneous
bias towards Whites & males; against colour,
female, poor, disabled
Schooling of Indigenous Children in USA & Australia
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Schooling of Indigenous Children in USA & Australia
Hickling-Hudson & Ahlquist (2003)
Critical perspective
Field visits, interviews, analysis of wall displays &
curricular artefacts
Some schools heavily dominated by White culture
(lacking community support)
Other schools celebrated indigenous cultural practices
(with strong community support)
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What are the pitfalls?
Terminology
Defining the unit of analysis
Ignoring the cultural contexts
Cherry-picking
Comparing for no obvious reason
Comparing for the wrong reasons
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Terminology
For example:
Middle School in the PRC = secondary school
Middle School in England = school bridging primary
and junior secondary school
D fi i th it f l i
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Defining the unit of analysis
Comparing the UK and the USA would need torecognize that both places have several education
systems.
USA has a state system with some federalinfluences.
UK comprises four countries, with Scotland having
a distinct education policy, and Wales & N. Ireland
in the process of delinking from England.Therefore we should define the place carefully to
ensure a clear unit of analysis.
I i th lt l t t
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Ignoring the cultural context
The contents and pedagogy of History curricula
would be very different in different systems
because of cultural factors: Hong Kong, for
example, has two curricula, World History andChinese History
A comparison of maths scores would need toconsider the number of hours allocated per grade;
the scope of the syllabus; the nature of
assessment; etc.
Ch i ki
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Cherry-picking
Care is needed in transferring ideas from overseas.
Michael Sadler (1900)
We cannot wander at pleasure among the
educational systems of the world, like a childstrolling through a garden, and pick off a flower
from one bush and some leaves from another, and
then expect that if we stick what we have gatheredinto the soil at home, we shall have a living plant.
Self-strengthening Movement in China
zhong xue wei ti, xi xue wei yong
C i f b i
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Comparing for no obvious reason
Comparison is pointless, unless:
the act of comparing can add extra dimensions to thestudy
units of comparison have sufficient in common to makecomparison meaningful
on the basis of similarities that are identified, a general
explanation can be formulated
there is a purpose that goes beyond comparing for its ownsake
C i f th
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Comparing for the wrong reasons
Some government agencies use unprocessed
comparisons to support or justify dubious policies
International study results are turned intocompetitive league tables, rather than being used
as indicators of educational development
Potential for comparative
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p
education
globalisation leads to greater interconnectivity &
principled sharing/appropriation
hi-tech can lead to low cost comparative research
Areas for comparative education
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Areas for comparative education
Current tensions in the appropriation of comparative
education to support utilitarianism in neo-liberal
discourses in education (social & economic efficiency)
Globalisation and utilitarianism also create ethical and
social equity issues
Need to focus on more humanistic approaches (learner-
centred, whole-person development, inter/culturalsensitivity, global futures orientation, etc.)?
Where can we start?
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Where can we start?
International consensus
Millennium Development Goals
Education for All
Millennium Development Goals
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Millennium Development Goals
Goal 1: Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger
Goal 2: Achieve universal primary education
Goal 3: Promote gender equality and empower women
Goal 4: Reduce child mortality
Goal 5: Improve maternal health
Goal 6: Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases
Goal 7: Ensure environmental sustainability
Goal 8: Develop a Global Partnership for Development
Education for All (EFA)
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Education for All (EFA)
World Education Forum in Dakar, Senegal (2000)
Expand early childhood care and education.
Free and compulsory education of good quality by 2015.
Promote the acquisition of life-skills by adolescents and
youth.
Expand adult literacy by 50 per cent by 2015.
Eliminate gender disparities by 2005 and achieve genderequality in education by 2015.
Enhance educational quality.
Spheres of action to support
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MDG & EFA
Cycles of appropriating, evaluating & disseminating
1. locally
2. regionally
3. internationally
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Towards a new model
of appropriation / dissemination
What tends to happen
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What tends to happen
Process:
1. Reform in context A
2. Generalisation & internationalisation
3. Appropriation in context B1 (policy level)
4. Appropriation in context B2 (resourced level)
5. Appropriation in context B3 (adopted level)
6. Appropriation in context B4 (implemented level)
Synthesis
and
adaptation
A pragmatic model
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A pragmatic model
Assess features of the policy / practice in context A
Align compatible features of the policy / practice in context Awithsalient features of:
appropriation sub-context B4 (implemented level) (priority)
appropriation sub-context B3 (adopted level)
appropriation sub-context B2 (resourced level)
appropriation sub-context B1 (policy level)
Concluding comments
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Concluding comments
Comparative education embraces the spectrum of
research purposes, approaches and methods
We are all comparativists, explicitly or implicitly
Globalisation opens up new opportunities and challenges
Comparative education research can contribute
deepened understandings, policy options, more effective
modes of implementation and enhanced experiences forthe betterment of society if used appropriately, and with
sensitivity to context.
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Diolch yn fawr!
Thank you!
!
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