Preface

This Annual Review of Comparative and International Education 2015 marks the third volume in the Annual Review sequence, which was first published in 2013 as a compliment to the International Perspectives on Education and Society (IPES) volume series. The Annual Review of Comparative and International Education (ARCIE) has the unique designation of being the only publication to systematically, reflectively, and annually review issues and perspectives in comparative and international education research. The field of comparative and international education is diverse in terms of both disciplinary, theoretical, methodological, and regional focus and has a history as a professional field of both searching for and being thwarted in attaining a separate and unique identity among the disciplines represented by those working in or with education in international and comparative contexts. As asserted in every volume of the Annual Review of Comparative and International Education, one of the benefits of an annual review is that it provides an opportunity to reflect on the past, present, and future directions of the field and to both celebrate as well as constructively critique the field and its recent accomplishments. It is also an opportunity to reflect, celebrate, and critique those elements and conditions that contribute to the continuous development of research, theory, policy, practice, and evaluation of education both comparatively and internationally.

There are many important volumes and journals publishing reflective pieces and scholarly reviews of research and practice in the field of comparative and international education, but the Annual Review of Comparative and International Education remains the only publication dedicated to the systematic and consistent reflection in the field of comparative and international education specifically. Another hallmark characteristic of the Annual Review of Comparative and International Education is that it continues to be developed under the guidance and recommendations of an experienced advisory board. The Annual Review’s advisory board is comprised of both established and emerging leaders in the field of comparative and international education, who are active in related scholarship and professional practice. We especially would like to recognize and thank the advisory board for giving their time and expertise to support the Annual Review. The 2015 Annual Review of Comparative and International Education advisory board are:

This volume is published with the sincere and heartfelt thanks to the many supporters who made the Annual Review of Comparative and International Education 2015 possible, and who contributed to enhancing the quality and rigor of each chapter, the Annual Review, and the International Perspectives on Education and Society series as a whole. Reflecting on the field of comparative and international education through a systematic and consistent examination of the published research in the field as well as the key conceptual, theoretical, methodological, and other developments over the past year is crucial to the continuous development and professionalization of comparative and international education as both a scholarly and practical field.