‘De facto’ privatisation of education and the poor: implications of a study from sub‐Saharan Africa and India

Introduction: the Political Consequences of Non-state Social Welfare in the Global South

“…The political dimensions of equitable access to social welfare are largely overlooked in much policy-oriented research, which tends to focus on individual demographic characteristics such as age, gender, 5 We distinguish between the qualitative experience of gaining access highlighted here and the actual quality of the benefit itself. The latter dimension is increasingly emphasized in the literature and merits more systematic empirical investigation than is highlighted in these special issue papers (MacLean 2010; Tooley and Dixon 2006;Prata et al 2005). class, race, or ethnicity in mediating access to medical care, education, and other aspects of social welfare (Wilkinson and Marmot 2003;Smedley et al 2003;Lantz et al 2007Lantz et al , 2010.…”

Does growth in private schooling contribute to Education for All? Evidence from a longitudinal, two cohort study in Andhra Pradesh, India

“…Those who support an expanded private sector argue that these trends signal more cost-effective educational opportunities which meet the aspirations of parents, including relatively low-income parents, disillusioned by the weaknesses of the government sector and keen to give their children access to what they perceive is better quality education (Tooley, 2004a,b;Tooley and Dixon, 2006;Tooley et al, 2007). Meanwhile, others voice concern about equity, arguing that private schools may continue to be out of reach of those from the most marginalised backgrounds and emphasising the core responsibilities of governments in fulfilling children's right to education (Lewin, 2007;Rose, 2009;Watkins, 2000).…”

“…For example, Tooley et al (2010) found that children in private recognised and unrecognised schools in the city of Hyderabad (the state capital of Andhra Pradesh) achieved higher test scores in English and Maths than their government school counterparts and that private unaided schools also offered superior facilities to the government equivalent. Low-fee private schooling is therefore suggested as a solution for poor families to the poor quality available at government schools, and their growth is viewed as positive for EFA goals and should be encouraged (Tooley and Dixon, 2006).…”

Expanding post‐primary education in Malawi: are private schools the answer?

“…equitable provision for the poor, adequate supply of secondary graduates into the labour market; Lewin and Sayed 2005). Tooley and Dixon (2006) presented three objections to these and argued that if private schools can be made available to all, including the poorest, and to girls through target vouchers, and if their quality (in some cases already higher than in government schools) can be improved through judicious support, the criticisms rendered against private schools are misdirected. Underlying the arguments is the assumption that private providers are more responsive to the demands of the labour market, and are more readily able to provide differentiated educational opportunities which are demand-led, than are governments, especially those which are highly centralised.…”