Private Schooling for the Poor?

Source: The Economist.

We all can appreciate the value of education. Not necessarily for the subjects learned or even for the knowledge gained, but more so for the signals that it sends to the world; That you are capable and have the ability to succeed in a given task. 

In many developing countries / LDCs the opportunity and privilege of an education is not often available. 

But there are an increasing number of private fee paying schools appearing. Parents are opting out of sending their children to the free schools and making higher and higher sacrifices in order to secure a place for their child in the local Eton. So why is that? 

The Economist offers some suggestions in their article Rich Pickings. Obtaining education, any type of education is no longer enough. Parents require more, they are looking for quality. With an increasing number of highly educated individuals (further and higher education), it is no longer enough to say you have your A-levels, degree or even a Masters. The world requires more and recruiters request more. They want to know what type of education you have, where you obtained it. Education purely as signalling phenomena has less pull. 

And in developing countries, parents know this. Even in some of the poorest regions they will sacrifice their needs to secure a place for their child. According to the Economist, it is not the fancy surroundings that they are after; in fact many of the oversubscribed schools in some parts of India and Kenya are in the smallest darkest rooms in some remote regions.

There are some valuable lessons to be learned here. In securing development it is no longer acceptable to just provide schools. Without adequate resources, investment in teaching (many schools have poor teacher with low rates of literacy) or focus on how skills can be practically utilised in the global market, little progress will be made.