After progress

Abstract

During the 1950s the field of comparative education was steered by the American idea of progress. The Comparative Education Society was founded under an assumption that research and understanding of education worldwide is progressive, and thus social engineering through education could ameliorate poverty, inequality, disease, and other midtwentieth-century challenges. This essay speculates on the future of a field that no longer assumes that more or better understanding about education will lead to better consequences. However, rather than conceding defeat, the essay offers examples from an agenda that is necessary to promote education for sustainability. Progress is still one guiding star for researchers, among others stars in the constellation. The Comparative and International Education Society can still contribute to a global conversation on sustainable development. However, the essay concludes by noting several key challenges for the organization.