The idea for this special issue was conceived at the Comparative and International Education Society conference (CIES) in Toronto, Canada, USA in 2014. At that time, I was planning a course/seminar at the Imo State University, Nigeria in “Education and Development in Comparative and International Education” with a focus on the use of local languages and local curriculum working with teachers in Nigerian languages (Igbo in Imo State) and English as well as Science subjects. The idea came to mind with Professor Tatyana Tsyrlina-Spady to share the workshop outcome in this special issue with contributions from other African voices and scholars interested in language, science, literacy and human rights in education.