Private Education

There is a perception that private schools are only for the elite and that low-cost private schools are not adequate. In some instances, administrators encourage parents to refrain from sending their children to private schools as there is a free government alternative where their children will become more rounded individuals due to the diversity of the learners that attend (TEDx, 2015).

This perception negatively impacts the role that private schools play in allowing society to achieve the Millennium Development Goals of equitable education and access to education for all. With this background to the way in which private schools are perceived, this paper serves to answer the question, “What is the role of low-cost private education in emerging

Even where private schools provide education, if they adhere to regulations they can obtain public funding (Pedró, Leroux, & Watanabe, 2015). However, in developing countries, governments cannot cope the with the increase in population and demand for education (Fielden & LaRocque, 2008). Therefore, many communities are left without access to basic education. UNESCO defines basic education as being taught the skills required for “… reading, writing, arithmetic – but also on the ability to express oneself in a language that lends itself to dialogue and understanding” (UNESCO, 2008). Current research does not clearly differentiate between basic and secondary education; therefore, this paper has merged them into a collective term, basic education. Although research shows that private higher education is also subjected to the same negative perception (Fielden & LaRocque, 2008); this paper excludes this segment of education in the belief that learners acquire the core skills during their basic and higher education phases, and upon completing this they are self-efficient and have self-determination that allows them to pursue higher education. Therefore, the role of private higher education becomes one of providing a cost affordable learning environment. Unlike basic and secondary education where parents decisions to send their children to school are based on a myriad

Studies show that when comparing the abilities of children that attend public school to their peers at private schools, those that attend private schools fare much better (Banerjee & Duflo, 2011). While in some poor communities there are no public schools as the government cannot keep up with the demand for education. Substantial research was conducted to determine the causes of these challenges and they (Andrabi, Das, Khwaja, Vishwanath, & Zajonc, 2007) identified three main factors; lack of accountability within public schools, misalignment between what is taught and what the market requires and insufficient schools. Firstly, accountability within government schools is lacking thereby reducing the quality of education as teachers are absent or not interested in supporting children that struggle to learn (Mbiti, 2016). Secondly, pedagogy is not aligned with current market demands thereby creating a misalignment between parents’ expectations of the benefits of sending their children to school instead of their children joining the labour force. Banerjee & Duflo (2011) comment, that when curriculum changes are implemented in response to market demand, then parents are willing to educate their children for them to obtain a higher paying job in the future. Finally, insufficient and