"Comparative and International Education: a Diversity of voices."--Cover.

"This volume is the first of five, with their origins in the proceedings of the World Council of Comparative Education Societies XIII World Congress, which met in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, 3-7 September 2007."

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Preliminary Material / Maria Teresa Tatto and Monica Mincu -- Reforming Teaching and Learning / Maria Teresa Tatto and Monica Mincu -- Reforming Teacher Education in Latin America and the USA / Mónica E. Pini and Jorge M. Gorostiaga -- Imagined Globalisation in Italian Education / Monica Mincu and Giorgio Chiosso -- Policy, Practices and Persistent Traditions in Teacher Education in South Africa / Joy Papier -- Documentation for Diffusion of Education Reform in Egypt / Nagwa Megahed and Mark Ginsburg -- Global Trends in Teaching Employment / Paula Razquin -- Qualified Teacher Status, One Indicator of the Teaching Profession’s Standards / Margaret E. Snow -- Japanese Technical Cooperation to Enhance Teacher Quality in Developing Countries / Yumiko Ono , Satoshi Nakamura , Mitsuko Maeda , Kensuke Chikamori and Masakazu Kita -- A Comparative Analysis of Teacher Competences in England and Finland / Raimo Nevalainen and Eija Kimonen -- Teacher Education in Serbia / Nataša Pantić -- Pre-service Secondary School Teachers’ Use of Symbols and Algebraic Relationships in Turkey / Derya Çelİk -- Teachers’ Concerns Profile Regarding The Reformed Mathematics Curriculum in Turkey / Tuba Gökçek -- Health Education / Graça S. Carvalho , Charline Laurent , Pierre Clement , Didier Jourdan and Dominique Berger -- Sex Education / Dominique Berger , Sandie Bernard , Salah-Eddine Khzami , Didier Jourdan and Graça S. Carvalho -- Teachers’ Linguistic and Cultural Potentialities / Spomenka Alvir and Annemarie Dinvaut -- Knit Together For a Better Service / Sunethra Karunaratne , Pushpa Vitharana , Pramitha Kumari Mahagamage , U Irani and Sakunthala Yatigammana -- School Projects in France / Joël Rich -- Notes On Contributors / Maria Teresa Tatto and Monica Mincu -- Index / Maria Teresa Tatto and Monica Mincu.

This volume addresses the larger question of the effects of (global) educational reform on teaching and learning as they relate to the context, the policies and politics where reform occurs. Maria Teresa Tatto and Monica Mincu bring together a group of leading scholars in the field representing a variety of national contexts and geographical areas. The chapters in the book raise crucial questions such as: What is the impact of globalization on local education systems and traditions? What roles do international agencies play? What is the role of the state? What is the role of policy networks? How do we understand the functions of quality assurance mechanisms, standards, competencies, and the “new” accountability? In doing so the chapters discuss the institutions and organization of education and how these shape what teachers learn and, eventually, teach to diverse populations. The book uses a number of analytical frameworks and theoretical perspectives, from critical discourse analysis, regime theory, empirical exploration of teachers’ thinking and actions within school contexts, analysis of reform diffusion and global trends. Using analysis of the literature and relevant documents, case studies and diverse forms of survey research, this work offers a glimpse of the complexities that exist in the fields of teaching and learning. This collection is also an occasion to observe the profile of knowledge production in these cultural contexts, the interplay between local and national research agendas and traveling policies around the world.