Neither a Borrower nor a Lender Be? The Problems of Cross‐national Attraction in Education

When Marc-Antoine Jullien put together the questionnaires appended to his Esquisse d'un ouvrage sur l'6ducation comparde [1] of 1816-17 with the express intention of identifying good educational practice and aiding its transfer to other systems, he sparked off an interest in the concept of educational 'borrowing' which has continued until today. Yet while one of the aims of comparative studies in education must indeed be to seek out and analyse good practice in other countries in the way Jullien intended, and to relate findings to the situation at home, the processes involved are fraught with problems-and open to considerable misuse. When such studies are undertaken by or on behalf of governments the use to which they are put must be subjected to very close scrutiny. The British example is of current interest.