Educating on a budget: The subsistence model of low-fee private schooling in Peru

Abstract

Over the last decades, Peru has experienced an extraordinary rise of low-fee private schools (LFPSs). While global debates on the quality of this modality of schooling have been gaining currency, research on the organizational practices of LFPSs remains comparatively underdeveloped. This paper aims at identifying and describing the managerial, business and organizational practices exhibited by Peruvian LFPSs– and at understanding them in relation to the social norms and institutional arrangements specific to the context in which they operate. The study draws on a combination of archival analysis, interviews with decision-makers, and interviews with school owners and principals. The results of our research show that the specificities of the socioeconomic, cultural and regulative environments in which Peruvian LFPSs operate have led to the consolidation of a particular subsistence model of LFPS where profit-making appears to play a limited role. This model is also characterized by the low formalization of management routines, the impossibility to generate economies of scale, and the reliance on interpersonal trust as a means to reduce risk – in a context of low bureaucratization and limited regulatory oversight. We argue that, in view of the distinctly low achievement levels of Peruvian LFPSs, gaining a fine-grained understanding of their organizational practices (and the incentives they respond to) remains a relevant task, and a necessary step to devise effective policy strategies.

COVID-19 Exodus: Parent preferences for public schools in Peru

“…Only 16% 18 of the students who experienced the assigned public school in 2020 returned to the private sector in 2021. Despite the evidence, that, all else equal, private schools do not have higher achievement than public schools (Balarin, 2015), parents in Peru have the perception that private schools are better 19 .…”

“…This unique opportunity allows us to identify some dimensions of public education that this group of parents value, and governments could reinforce or dispel misconceptions about the public education system 1 . Strengthening public education has many potential benefits: functioning as a safety net for all members of society (Singh et al, 2014), as a large-scale adaptable apparatus that allows all students to cope with times of need (such as with , as an equalizer of inequitable family backgrounds via reducing economic segregation (Murillo et al, 2018;Elacqua, 2012;Balarin, 2015).…”

Exodus to Public School: Parent Preferences for Public Schools in Peru

“…In response, the Ministry of Education designed a centralized assignment system to integrate these students into the public sector. The inherent experimental variation of this system presents a unique opportunity to better understand the priorities of this specific group of parents: middle-and lower-middle-class families who would otherwise enroll their children in private schools (Balarin et al, 2019). It furthermore offers the possibility of gaining valuable insights useful for governments seeking to strengthen the supply of public schooling and potentially reverse pre-pandemic trends in public and private education.…”

“…Indeed, the latter functions as a safety net for all members of society (Singh et al, 2014); it is an adaptable, largescale apparatus that all students can rely on in times of need (such as with COVID-19 or climate-change-induced schooling disruptions). It furthermore works an equalizer of disparate family backgrounds, which can reduce economic segregation (Murillo et al, 2018;Elacqua, 2012;Balarin, 2015).…”

Can Information on School Attributes and Placement Probabilities Direct Search and Choice? Evidence from Choice Platforms in Ecuador and Peru

“…For details, refer to Directiva N 014-2012-MINEDU/VMGP "Normas y Orientaciones para el Desarrollo de Año Escolar 2013 en la Educación Básica." However, recent evidence shows that private schools continue to use different instruments to screen students and families, including cognitive tests and interviews(Balarin et al, 2019).…”