ABSTRACT
In the twenty-first century comparative education is a very different field, and one that has experienced fundamental transformations since it flourished within university programmes in the UK, USA, Europe and beyond during the 1960s and 1970s (Crossley and Watson 2009). Much has also changed since the last time that the Editorial Board for this journal reflected upon the ‘state of the art’ in two linked Millennium Special Issues (Crossley and Jarvis 2000, 2001). This contribution to the 50th Anniversary of Comparative Education reflects upon three key issues and challenges that have emerged since the turn of the century, and that demand urgent and critical attention within and beyond the field in coming years. Running throughout the article is an overarching theme that has long characterised both comparative studies and my own research – concern with uncritical international policy transfer in education.
