Comparative Education

The word “Comparative Education” has been widely used nowadays, however, it is said that “Comparative Education” has been developed starting from Pre-history period up to the present. There were many pioneers in the history in order to find lands to settle for a better life. Since then, those travelers had interests to nurture their children observing good things from others foreign lands and attempted to develop their communities. Particularly, they looked for the similarities and differences of other communities and adapt in their own community. There were many famous scholars in those areas such as Xenophon who did comparative studies for Persian and Sparta education, Plato, Julius Caesar, and Cicero especially who compared Greek and Roman education. Later on, other scholars like Victor Cousin who advocated to apply Prussian education experience in France and likewise Horrace Mann in America and Henry Barnard. The consecutive period was leading to analyze different education and reform and included many factors in terms of politics, economics, demographics and culture to consider the educational development. The well-known persons like William Torrey Harris from American suggesting the impossibility of borrowing one successful education system from different countries and reapply as there were many factors impacting differently in each county. When it comes to the most recent period approximately from 1900s up to the present, there were many factors taking for consideration for the development of comparative education with international cooperation, quality and research particularly focusing on the social sciences and humanities. Comparative Education becomes mainstream and headline for academic debate and research within different stakeholders from education; moreover, there were many books and articles for Comparative Education.

Nevertheless, that trend of Comparative Education could be encountered clearly in the western countries attempting for the quality of education while most of the eastern countries are having difficulty for equal access of education.