Globalisation and Teacher Education in the BRICS Countries The Positioning of Research and Practice in Comparative Perspective

'This book presents a timely and comprehensive overview and analysis of globalisation and teacher education in Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa (BRICS countries). While the apparent diversity of geographies, economies, and polities of these five countries could have resulted in an interesting publication authoritatively discussing teacher education in each context, the authors have seized the opportunity to recognise such diversity as fertile ground for comparative study. In a welcome addition to the international literature, the book provides a rigorous comparative study of teacher education in the BRICS countries utilising the key dimensions of time, space, and political economy. Responding to perceptions that spatial perspectives are commonly absent in comparative teacher education research, incorporating a spatial perspective as central to the analysis is particularly illuminating. The resulting publication richly demonstrates the inextricable connections and influences of history and culture on teacher education and the simultaneous interactions with globalising forces. It provides a valuable contribution to current political discourse on the worth of teacher education and the teaching profession within and beyond the BRICS alliance.'

Diane Mayer, PhD, Professor Emeritus, University of Oxford, UK; Honorary Professor, University of Sydney, Australia; Honorary Professor, The University of Queensland, Australia.

'Comparative education is alive and kicking! In case you hadn't noticed, this book provides a fine piece of evidence for it. It sets an example for the comparative educational research agenda by wonderfully balancing careful consideration of national contexts and diversity on the one hand and the search for identifying and conceptualizing transnational processes on the other. First the authors present five national case studies on the impact of globalization and its economic rationale on teacher education in each of the BRICS nations -Brazil, China, India, Russia and South-Africa. These rich contextualized reconstructions of the national developments, are followed by the results of a critical comparative cross-case analysis in which the authors discuss, explain and theorize commonalities and differences. Insightful understandings emerge, rooted in the past and informing the future.'

Prof. Dr. Geert Kelchtermans - KU Leuven, Belgium.