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Can choice promote Education for All? Evidence from growth in private primary schooling in India

Compare A Journal of Comparative and International Education · 2009 · 110 citations · 19 references

TL;DR

This paper examines whether the recent growth in low‑fee private schools can promote Education for All by being accessible to the poor, specifically assessing affordability and accessibility for poor rural parents. The study uses a 13‑village survey of 250 households and visits to 26 private and government schools in rural Uttar Pradesh to investigate who chooses private schooling amid the documented failure of the government system. The study finds that LFP school costs are unaffordable for over half of sampled children, especially low caste and Muslim families, and that although LFPs are greatly preferred, parents ultimately desire a well‑functioning government school system.

Abstract

This paper examines whether the recent growth in 'low‐fee private' (LFP) schools is able to promote Education for All by being accessible to the poor. Based primarily on a 13‐village survey of 250 households and visits to 26 private and government schools in rural Uttar Pradesh, India, this paper explores who 'chooses' private schooling, in the light of the well‐documented failure of the government school system. In particular, the paper explores the issue of whether private provision is affordable and accessible to poor rural parents. It finds that LFP school costs are unaffordable for over half of the sampled children, including the majority of low caste and Muslim families. It also finds that while LFPs are greatly preferred under current conditions, what parents actually want is a well‐functioning government school system.