THIS IS AN EXCELLENT ESSAY BY KERI D. INGRAHAM. Even better, it’s just Part I of a three-part series. More to come . . . “What if Low-Cost Private Education Existed?

A Question Worth Exploring

 

What if low-cost private education existed in the U.S.? Given the dissatisfaction with traditional public schools and the desire for private education alternatives mentioned above, it’s a crucial question.

 

James Tooley, in his recently released book, Really Good Schools: Global Lessons for High-Caliber, Low-Cost Education, shares his remarkable journey of discovering, studying, and starting low-cost private schools serving poor and low-income families in developing nations. A product of grassroots movement rather than central organization or control, these low-cost private schools in countries marked by extreme poverty for a high percentage of their population are a part of a global movement — largely unheard of by those in the developed world.

 

Particularly surprising is that parents living in poverty are opting to send their children to tuition-charging private schools when free, government-provided schools are available. The reason is perhaps not so surprising: parents desire quality education and care for their children, even if it causes financial hardship. Overwhelmingly, parents in these schools communicated that a nurturing classroom atmosphere and freedom from a “hidden curriculum” lead to their sacrificial decision to enroll their children in private school. And these are not just a few outlier families — low-cost private schools educate a significant number of students. For example, in Kampala, Uganda, 84% of primary-school children are enrolled in private education.

 

Similar to the experience in the U.S., Tooley’s research found that “children in low-cost private schools outperform those in government schools, after controlling for all relevant background variables. And the schools do it for a fraction of the per-pupil cost.” Likewise, parental satisfaction with private schools in developing nations is significantly higher than in government-run public schools. . . .

 

Applicability for America

 

What can we learn from these developing world private schools? Can their experience be replicated in the U.S.? While the economic landscapes differ, the undergirding principles are universal — private education provides competition to government public schools and promotes accountability. Both of these ingredients are foundational to providing quality education. Private schools are accountable to parents for providing quality academic results, or they will cease to exist. The education monopoly in American K-12 public education, on the other hand, results in the perpetuation of a dismal status quo, which fails to effectively educate over 70% of its students.

 

America would be wise to learn from developing nations and aggressively increase private education — making it available to low-income families and those in poverty, not just to the upper-middle class, wealthy, and elite. It starts with putting more education dollars where they belong — in the hands of parents, who can best decide where their kids should be educated. The resulting boom in educational entrepreneurship would put the U.S. as a leader in K-12 education.

 

Strongly urging you to read the whole essay.