LECTURE 10

HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT OF COMPARATIVE EDUCATION AND

APPROACHES TO THE STUDY OF COMPARATIVE EDUCATION
8.1. Introduction
The historical development of comparative education can be divided into three
stages. They are: descriptive stage, predictive stage and scientific stage.

8.2. Objective
At the end of this lecture, you should be able to:

1. Explain the historical development of comparative education.

2. State and explain the phases

3. Explain the approaches used in the study of comparative

education

4. Mention of the approaches to the study of comparative

education.

5. Discuss some of the approaches to the study of comparative

education

8.3. Historical Background

In the beginning, Comparative Education was not really Comparative but
descriptive as the people were mostly concerned with the description of
educational systems of each country without necessarily comparing one
educational systems with another. However, the 19th Century witnessed an
increased interest in the study of Comparative Education as education started to be
studied in a Comparative form.
As a matter of fact, what can be regarded as serious studies in the field of
Comparative Education could be traced to the early 19th century after the
Napoleonic wars? Since there was no war among the Europeans, there was peace
among them and they needed something that could enhance their interaction with
one another. Therefore, a consideration was given to the study of comparative
education as a strong channel through which the youths of various European
countries could be more unified. To this end, John Griscom travelled to Europe and
on his return, he published his findings on educational institutions in the countries
visited such as Great Britain, France, Switzerland, Italy as well as Holland between
1818 and 1819.

In the same vein, Victor Cousin, a representative of the French Minister of

education visited Prussia in 1931 and also on return home, published his findings
on the Prussian educational institutions and practices, His findings were later
translated to English and enhanced the educational development in France,
England as well as in America.

Another pioneer in the field of Comparative Education was Horace Mann of

America who after a six-month visit to Europe also published his findings in 1843
on educational institutions and practices in England, Scotland, Ireland, France,
Germany as well as Holland. His report was purely on the comparison of the
school organization and methods of instruction.

Matthew Arnold of England visited both France and Germany in 1859 and 1865.
On his return home, he made some remarks particularly on the educational
institutions and practices in both France and Germany. Like others, he advised that
some useful aspects of the educational system of France and Germany should be
integrated into the systems of education in England.
What can be viewed as second generation in the study of Comparative Education
could be traced to Sir Michael Sadler who in one of his publications: how far can
we learn anything of practical value from the study of Foreign Systems of
Education which was published in 1900, went further than other pioneers before
him who were more utilitarian and straight forward in the description of the foreign
educational systems studied by them.

While contributing to the development of Comparative Education study, Kandel

cited by Hans (1958) observed that:

The chief value of a Comparative approach to educational problems lies in an

analysis of the causes which have produced them, in a comparison of the
differences between the various systems and the reasons underlying them and
finally, in a study of the solutions attempted. In other words, the comparative
approach demands first and appreciation of the intangible, impalpable spiritual and
cultural forces which underlie an educational system, the factors and forces outside
the school matter even more than what goes inside it.

In the same vein, Friedrich Schneider, a German speaking and Director of the
Institute of Comparative Education, Salzburg started the editing of the international
Review of Education in four languages in 1930.

In his 1947 publication, he gave the following as the factors that can influence the
educational theory and practice of any country:

 National character
 Geographical space
 Culture
 Sciences
 Philosophy
  Economic life and politics
 Religion
 History
 Foreign influences and
 The development of pedagogies
Like others, he applied historical approach to the problems of education of all the
countries visited by him.

In his own contribution to the development of Comparative Education, Sergius

Hessen, a Russian Philosopher looked at Comparative Education from a
Philosophical Education point of view. In his book published in 1928, he selected
four problems as an educational policy focus. The problems are

 Compulsory education
 The school and the State
 The school and the church and
 The school and economic life. Hessen was perhaps the first education
philosopher to apply philosophical approach.
Also, the Comparative Education Society, introduced by Brickman, came into
being at a conference in New York in 1956. This society assists in the publication
of journal called "The Comparative Education Review". In addition, it holds
national as well as regional conferences and seminars.

In 1961, a similar society was established in Europe after launching the new
society in London. The membership of the Society was extended to the experts in
the field of Comparative or International Education in the tertiary Institutions or
the International organizations. Like others, it holds its conferences every two
years and publishes the proceedings of its conferences. Meanwhile, similar
societies have been established in Canada, Korea as well as Japan. Perhaps World-
Wide today, the discipline is one of the subjects being offered in all the
Universities and Colleges of Education. The Society for Comparative Education
was founded in Nigeria in 1983 while the World congress on the discipline came
into being in the year 1982 for Cooperation among the people involved in the study
of the subject as well as the general development of Comparative Education.

8.4. Factors responsible for increased interest in the study of Comparative

Education
Osokoya, P G (1992) gives the following as the other factors responsible for
increased interest in the study of Comparative Education.

 The emergence of newly independent states and developing countries

who wanted a good educational system as soon as possible. For
instance, the newly introduced educational system in Nigeria 6-3-3-4
which was borrowed from America took the Nigerian delegation to
schools and companies manufacturing the educational equipment in
Sweden.
 The greater frequency of travel to attend conferences, seminars as
well as workshops abroad.
 The improvement in the modern means of transport as well as
communication.
 The awareness of scientific and technological achievements in the
advanced countries such as Russia and Sputnik.
 The socio-economic and political problems facing other countries.
8.5. Phases in the Development of Comparative Education
The phases in the historical development of Comparative Education can be divided
into three namely: (a) Descriptive and borrowing stage (b) Predictive stage (c)
Scientific stage.

First phase

During the first phase of the development of Comparative Education, the

educational comparativists involved in this stage include:

Marc-Anthony Jullien de Paris, 1817, Mathew Arnold of England, Victor cousin of

France, Leo Tolstoy and K.D. Aushinsky of Russia, Domingo Sermiento of
Argentina, Horace Mann and Henry Barbard of America. At the borrowing stage,
the education data collected would be compared so as to make use of it for the best
educational practice of the country studied for the purpose of transplanting it to
other countries.

Second Phase

The second phase in the study of comparative education took place in the first half
of the 20th century. The stage could be regarded as a stage of Prediction because at
this stage, the study of comparative education has gone beyond the borrowing
stage. At this stage, the educational comparativists studying the educational
institutions and practices of another country will be in the position to predict what
is likely to be the success or failure of adopting the educational practices of the
country studied by his own country. It should be remembered by both the students
and the teachers of comparative education that the students and the teachers of
comparative education that the basis on which a country's educational practice is
based may not necessary be the same thing with that of education comparatives
studying the education system of other countries. The educational comparativists
involved in this stage included: Friedrich Schneider and Franz Hilker of Germany,
Isaac Kandel as well as Robert Ulich of America., Nicholas Hans as well as Joseph
Lanwerys of England including Pedro Rosselo of Switzerland. They tried to find
out the reasons behind the educational practices of the country visited by them and
they became more careful in transplanting the educational practices of another
country to their own.

Third Phase

The third stage can be regarded as the scientific period or analytical period. This
stage took place in the second half of the 20 th century. The period witnessed
rigorous analysis as well as objectivity in the study of educational practices of
other countries. At this stage, before transplanting the educational practices of
another country to one's country, such educational practices have to be subjected to
a critical analysis unlike the first stage when the educational practices of the
country visited can be borrowed or the second stage when the implication of
transplanting the educational practices of another country can be easily predicted.
The comparativists involved in this stage included: Schneider, Kandel as well as
Uich.

8.6. Approaches to the Study of Comparative Education

Awolola (1986) identified eight approaches to the study of Comparative
Education. They are:

 Problem Approach or Thematic approach

 Case study approach
 Area study approach
 Historical approach
 Descriptive approach
  Philosophical approach
 International approach and
 Gastronomic approach
8.6.1. Thematic or Problem Approach
Here, the investigator will first of all identify a particular educational problem in
his own country. Then, he will begin to look for another country that has the same
problem. The researcher will also study the education problem of another country
in relation to their culture. The researcher will not only study the education
problem of another country but he will also examine the solution applied to such
problem by the affected country. From this, he will think of how he will be able to
solve their own educational problem as well. It should be noted that Culture,
economic, Socio Political factors vary from one country to another as a result of
which educational problems and solutions may not necessarily be the same.

8.6.2. Case Study Approach

In this approach, an education Comparativist from Nigeria can go to Iraq to study
the primary education Level of the country. His report (is believed) will be very
comprehensive for his readers to understand. If it is possible for the researcher, he
can take all the educational systems of the country and compare such educational
system with his own educational system. The problem with this approach is that as
a human being, the investigator may not be totally objective in his report.

8.6.3. Area Study Approach

The world area here could refer to a village, a town or country depending on the
educational comparativist who wants to carry out the study. Under this approach,
the educational comparativist will engage himself in the educational practices of
only one country, if it is a country that he has chosen. The investigator is going to
involve himself in several activities as a result of which he is going to arrive at a
body of generalizations on the educational system he is studying. The study under
this approach is always based on geographical, linguistic or racial boundaries.

However, Bereday (1958) is of the opinion that "one of the oldest and clearest
ways of introducing the subject (Comparative Education) is to study one
geographical area at a time" He therefore identified the following stages in the area
study approach:

 Descriptive Stage - At this stage, an Educational Comparativist can make a

description of his own educational system as well as practices. The
researcher has to start by reading extensively. He will start by reviewing the
available literature on the educational system of the country being studied.
To enable the investigator have on the spot assessment, he can personally
visit the country whose educational system is studying.
 Interpretation Stage - At this stage of the study, the investigator will now
collate and analyse the data gathered from various sources to enable him do
justice to the educational system of the area being studied.
 Juxtaposition Stage - At this stage of the study, the investigator will put side
by side the result obtained from the interpretation stage with the educational
system of his own country.
 Comparative Stage - At this stage of the investigation, the researcher will
objectively compare and contrast the educational practices of the country
being studied with that of his own. It is at this stage of the study that
whatever hypotheses that might have been formulated by the researcher that
will be rejected or accepted.
8.6.4. Historical Approach
Under this approach, an investigator will only take a village, town or country for
the examination of its educational historical development right from the first day
when education was introduced into the place and the time of study. This approach
will enable the researcher to identify the factors that are responsible for the current
educational system of the country being studied. However, the problem with this
approach is that greater emphasis is always placed on the past.

8.6.5. Descriptive Approach

Here, the investigator will have to describe everything he finds on ground. Such
things to be described could include: Number of schools, student enrolment,
number of teachers, number of the school buildings including classrooms as well
as the number of subjects being offered. However, the approach is not very popular
among the modern educational Comparativists.

International Approach

This is an approach whereby all the variations existing from one area to another
within the same country are taken into consideration while comparing the system
of education of a foreign country with one's educational system.

Gastronomic Approach

This is a method whereby both the diet as well as the eating habit of the people in a
particular country are related to the practices of their education, the approach is not
very popular among the modern educational comparativists.

The Field Study Approach

This approach is not new in the area of the subject. On this approach, Brickman
(1966) cited by Alabi and Oyelade (1998) observed that:

Visitation of foreign countries whether for the purpose of commerce, conversation

curiosity or conflict, goes back to ancient history, travelers in all historical periods
must have brought back facts and impression concerning the cultures of the other
countries they had visited, included in their reports must have been comments
relating to the young and their upbringing. They may also have made some
remarks regarding the similarities and differences in the ways of educating
children. Some, indeed, may have arrived at conclusions involving the expression
of value judgments.

In using this approach for studying comparative education Halls (1965) cited by
Alabi and Oyelade (1998) identifies three stages in the field study of approach.
They are:

 Preparatory stage
 Investigatory and analytical stage as well as
 Evaluatory and Comparative stage.
Preparatory Stage: This is the stage in which the investigator will have to prepare
himself very well before traveling to his country of interest. He has to be familiar
with the country he wants to visit by reading very extensively about the country.

Investigatory and Analytical Stage: At this stage, the researcher will have to
formulate some hypotheses on the educational practices of the country he wants to
study. The formulation of these hypotheses will give him a focus on what to look
for.

Evaluatory Comparative Stage: At this stage, the investigator after coming back
from his travel to the foreign country, will now examine the practices of education
of the country he has visited in relation to the educational practices of his own
country with a view to establishing the similarities as well as the differences
existing in the educational practices of the two countries it is also at this stage that
the hypotheses earlier on formulated will either be rejected or accepted. The field
study approach unlike area study approach, concerns itself with the study of the
educational systems of many countries at the same time. It also involves visiting
the foreign countries of interest to enable the investigator make an objective
comparison between the foreign educational practices and that of his country.

The Scientific Approach

This is an approach in which the study of comparative education is carried out

empirically by formulating hypotheses, defining the important concepts, setting out
the variables as well as the conditions for establishing the validity of the
hypotheses formulated. Since in any scientific research, data collection its
interpretation with the help of statistics of analysis are very important,. These must
not also be lacking in the study of Comparative Education to enhance the quality
and credibility of whatever may be the result of the investigation.

The Integrated Approach

This is an approach in which other disciplines such as history, philosophy,

geography; economics, anthropology and statistics are integrated in to the study of
Comparative Education because of their usefulness. As it has already been stated,
it is not possible for Comparative Education as a discipline to stand on its own as it
has to draw from other subjects which include the disciplines mentioned above.

The Philosophical Approach

A Russian Philosopher by name Serguis Hessen was the first man to apply
philosophical approach to the study of Comparative Education when he published
his book in 1928 which he tittled "Kritische Vergleichung des Schulwesens der
Anderen Kuturstaaten". In the book, he chose four main philosophical problems.
The problems chosen by him are:

 Compulsory education
  The School and the State
 The school and the Church and
 The School and Economic life.
He analysed the underlying principles and later followed it by giving a critical
account of modern legislation in many countries.

Kosemani (1995) believes that philosophical approach is a step forward to solve

the problems in the national character approach.

According to him, there are two major problems involved in the application of
philosophical approach to the study of comparative education. The problems are:

 Difference in emphasis as a result of which it may be difficult to use the

same criterion (national ideology) for the comparison.
 There are many countries without clear cut national ideologies.
 From the above, it could be deduced that with philosophical approach,
hypotheses could be formulated, be tested and could also be empirically
validated for better explanation of educational practices of various countries.
The Comparative Approach

In this approach, the reader must not be made to do the comparison of various
educational practices by himself, rather, the comparison and conclusion have to be
done by the investigator himself.

Data on the educational practices to be compared must have been gathered and
reviewed. In addition, hypotheses should have also been formulated to assist in the
gathering of data. Then, the educational practices of the country under study will
be put side by side with the educational practices of another country slated for
comparison.
The next stage after Juxtaposition is the comparison of the educational practices of
the countries that have been put side by side. It is at stage of comparison that the
hypotheses that had been formulated earlier on will be rejected or accepted.

8.7. Learning Activities

Activity1: Definition of Comparative Education as a Concept

Read on the definition of comparative education as a concept.

Write down two definitions which contain the elements of methodology, content
and purpose of study.

Activity 2: Identifying the scope of the discipline

Read on the scope of the discipline

Reflect by answering the following questions

 What are the subject/content matters in the discipline?

 What are the geographical units of study in the discipline?
 What are the ideological scopes in the discipline?
 What are the thematic scopes of the discipline?
 What are the historical / spatial scopes of the discipline?
Activity 3: Purposes of Studying Comparative Education

Read on the purposes of studying comparative education.

Using the information, identify at least three ways in which comparative education
can be;

Can or has been correctly studied and applied to reform the education system of a
country of your choice.
Can or has been wrongfully studied and applied to reform the education system of
a country of your choice.

Activity 4: Some of the Traditional and Modern Methods used In

Comparative Education

Read on some of the Traditional and Modern Methods used In Comparative

Education.

Reflect and undertake the following task

Using any one method of study, identify an educational problem in your country
and show how you would carry out a comparative study.

8.8. References
Awolola, A. (1986) Readings in Comparative Education, Ibadan, Stevelola,
Education Publishers.

Bereday, G.F. (1958). Some Methods of Teaching Comparative Education,

Comparative Education Review.