Education (Comparative and International Education)

The information provided on this page was correct at the time of publication (November 2024). For complete and up-to-date information about this course, please visit the relevant University of Oxford course page via www.graduate.ox.ac.uk/ucas.

The MSc Education (Comparative and International Education) offers you an understanding of the factors that shape the development and trajectories of educational systems in different parts of the world. You will learn the research skills to compare policy choices and critically evaluate the major debates in the delivery of public and private education.

This full-time course comprises three core papers that cover, among other things, the theoretical, historical, empirical and philosophical underpinnings of the field of comparative and international education, the interdisciplinary nature and impact of the research in comparative education, and the political nature of governance and policy choices.

In addition to three pathway-specific core papers, two core papers in research methods will develop your understanding in key concepts and principles of educational research design and methodology, using both quantitative and qualitative methods and data. You will benefit from the expertise available through the Qualitative Methods Hub and the Quantitative Methods Hub at the Department of Education.

The five core modules are:

- Comparative and International Education: An Overview of the Field

- Systems Thinking in Comparative and International Education

- The Implementation of the Rights of Children

- Foundations of Educational Research 1: Concepts and Design

- Foundations of Educational Research 2: Strategies and Methods

You will also choose one assessed option paper from a selection offered by academic staff across the department. The following list provides an indication of modules usually available (please note, this is not a guarantee of availability for any particular elective in a given year):

- Core Principles of Child Assessment

- Critical Digital Innovation

- Education, the Internet and Society

- Global Higher Education

- Intermediate Quantitative Research

- Perspectives and Debates in Qualitative Research

- Researching with the South: Decolonizing communication practices in education research

The teaching style adopted is usually a combination of tutor and student input, and is reliant on students' reading of key texts, preparation of arguments, responses to a presentation and/or analysis of documents and various group activities. Students that make up the cohort have different professional and academic backgrounds and different perspectives on how the degree will best enable them to engage with their future careers. As such, you will be encouraged to take charge of your studies by reading widely beyond the course materials and engaging your tutors in discussion about things that you are passionate about.