Educación comparada : una disciplina actual u obsoleta?

Abstract

The present purpose paper of is to show that one of the main factors account-ing for the desolate situation of Comparative Education in Brazil is the almost com-plete lack of research in the area. Compara-tive Education was introduced in the curricula of our institutions of higher education, but in contrast to what was happen-ing in the more developed centers, research was relegated to a second plane. This fact led to a disqualification of the discipline wich began to be considered an obsolete activity and seen with disinterest by professors and students in the field of education. The development of Comparative Education at the international levei, however, and the present internationalizing trend of science convinced us that the comparative method can bring important contribution to the production of useful knowledge for the development of education policies and for the training of specialists in education. To make Comparative Education viable, useful and productive discipline it is necessary to develop research in the area. Due to our limited conditions, it seems con-venient and more feasible to redirect our research priority to the
Latin American context.