Ontological politics of decolonisation in comparative education

This article engages critically with ongoing debates on decolonisation in comparative education, contending that divergent positions on the issue reflect ontological politics – the idea that empirical realities, particularly in postcolonial contexts, are inherently complex and often contested through struggles over which realities are recognised as legitimate or more real. Rather than viewing contrasting accounts as mutually exclusive, I argue that such differences may instead be understood as complementary. The discussion focuses on two aspects of these divergences: the contested meanings of decolonisation, and the ways in which theoretical assumptions underpinning research accounts also enact multiple realities. These themes are illustrated through a re-examination of the scholarship on the politics of education in Hong Kong. Instead of treating the vehement disagreements provoked by the decolonial lens as irreconcilable divides, I propose they be embraced as productive tensions, vital for pushing the intellectual frontier further.