Hechtius (1795–1798) – the beginnings of historical-philosophical-idiographic research in comparative education. Issue 1 (2nd January 2018)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Lenhart, Volker
• Is Part Of: Comparative education. Number 54:Issue 1(2018)
• Page Start: 26
• Page End: 34
• Publication Date: 2018-01-02
• Subjects: First treatise in comparative education -- transnationality vs. national character in education -- idiographic vs. nomothetic methodology -- transfer of philological methods to comparative education -- mixed methods in comparative education; Education -- Periodicals; Comparative education -- Periodicals; 370.9
• DOI: 10.1080/03050068.2017.1396094
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0305-0068

Abstract

ABSTRACT: From its very beginnings, we can discern two methodological approaches to comparative education; one broadly historical-philosophical-idiographic and another broadly empirical-positivist-nomothetic. Friedrich August Hecht's 1795–1798 De re scholastica Anglica cum Germanica comparata ( English and German school education compared ), with its hermeneutic textbook analysis, represents an idiographic methodology. Whilst the 1816/1817 data-driven research programme of Marc-Antoine Jullien – usually considered the origin of comparative education – represents an empirical-positivist-nomothetic approach. In this essay, we will examine the theoretical orientations of Hecht's study – his ideas of transnationality and national character, and his avoidance of the proposal of borrowing and lending. We situate the beginnings of Hecht's methodology in its social-historical context and analyse the transfer of interpretation methods from philology to comparative education. Finally, we will postulate a combination of Jullien's and Hecht's methodological approaches.