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The National Academies Press (NAP) released a report in 2003 titled Understanding Others, Educating Ourselves: Getting More from International Comparative Studies in Education. It was published by the Board on International Comparative Studies in Education (BICSE) of the NAP’s National Research Council (NRC).

In light of the ongoing work of the World Forum Foundation (WFF) and the growing interest in global issues among other early childhood education and care (ECEC) organizations, got example: (ACEI - www.acei.org, NAEYC’s Global Alliance- www.naeyc.org, OMEP-USNC - www.omep-usnc.org); WAECE - www.waece.org, etc., this report strikes a chord among educators interested in international ECE issues. The report counsels educators, first of all, to understand the education systems in various locations, and to recognize their complexities in an international context.

The purpose of the BICSE research is “to increase the rigor and sophistication of international comparative studies in education by encouraging synergies between large and smaller scale international comparative education research, to identify gaps in the existing research base, and to assist in communicating results to policy makers and the public.” The report recommends that the U.S. address interpretive studies in Latin America, and examine issues that include school governance and school outcomes beyond achievement. Additional recommendations include:

· Consideration for including international components into major U.S. education research programs;

· Support for studies using a wide range of rigorous and diverse research methodologies appropriate to the research questions under examination;

· Support for simultaneous primary and secondary analysis and reanalysis; and

· Production of syntheses of existing research findings...across three or more countries.

The report executive summary is available at http://books.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=10622&page=1. Read the full report online at http://www.nap.edu/catalog/10622.html. Find other NAP publications at http://www.nap.edu. The National Academy of Science (NAS) holds a charter from the U.S. Congress (1863) “to advise the federal government on scientific and technical matters.”

Contributed by Edna Ranck

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