Comparative Methodology and Postmodern Relativism

The author addresses the problems of conducting comparative studies in education if one adopts a viewpoint of postmodern relativism. While acknowledging the value of postmodernist thought in opening up a new understanding of the educational process, he finds that postmodernism raises difficulties when one attempts to deal with the differences and interactions between cultures. He rejects the extremes of both relativism and universalism and argues that comparative studies should be based on a balance between the two.