1st WCCES Symposium – Call for Papers

Comparative Education for Global Citizenship, Peace and Harmony through Ubuntu

Ali Mazrui Center for Higher Education, University of Johannesburg, South Africa
21-22 June 2018

The broad goals of the World Council of Comparative Education Societies (WCCES) are:

  • advance education for international understanding in the interests of peace, intercultural co-operation, mutual respect among peoples and observance of human rights
  • improve education systems so that the right of all to education may be more fully realized.

The theme of this first WCCES symposium responds to the above broad goals and it would be a privilege for its Executive Committee members and wider community of comparative education to actively contribute to its successful organization. The past few decades have been marked by increased globalization and fast-paced technological innovations that have accelerated the global connectivity and reduced the perceived and actual distance between the world populations. Never before in the history of human civilization have people had better opportunities of looking beyond their own villages, towns, cities, districts/counties, provinces/states and countries to identify with a view to satisfying their existence as quintessential citizens of our planet Earth. Paradoxically, while intermingling of cultures, economies and civilizations has brought about unprecedented synergies, challenges have also emerged simultaneously, including the sense of exclusion and disconnect. Education has played a major role in triggering and sustaining globalization. Comparative and international education looms large in ongoing processes and possibilities of addressing the prevailing issues. Papers with a particular focus on these issues are especially welcome.

Questions for Consideration

A number of questions, including (but not limited to) the following are raised as the guiding thread for this symposium

  • What is the relationship between formal education and the sense of alienation/lack of inclusion?
  • What is the relationship between the different levels of formal education achievement, including the highest degrees from reputable institutions of higher learning from across the globe and the prevailing societal problems?
  • What are the needs and possibilities for promoting re-education of formally educated people or re-conceptualizing and re-designing education to include humanistic values systematically?
  • How can comparative education with its international component contribute to a better understanding of what works and what does not in promoting the virtues of interconnectedness, nonviolence, peace, inclusiveness, improved quality of life and a better appreciation of the positive implications of interdependence within global citizenship?
  • How can comparative education help promote the values of shared humanity?

The agenda of the symposium is to harness comparative education for more meaningful well-being and improved quality of life across the globe through the paradigm of Ubuntu, which stands for a shared present and hopeful common future.

Deadline for 300 words abstract submission in English (Microsoft Word) to symposium@wcces-online.org: 28 Feb. 2018

Decision of acceptance by: 15 Mar. 2018

Selected full papers (6000 words) will be considered for publication in: Global Comparative Education: Journal of the WCCES (www.theworldcouncil.net). Selected short papers (3000 words) will be considered for publication in: World Voices Nexus: The WCCES Chronicle (www.worldcces.org). An edited book manuscript will also be considered. Relevant papers that will not be revised to satisfaction for publication will be posted online.

For more details, please visit the WCCES website: www.wcces-online.org