Poor parents too prefer private schools

The poorest parents of Delhi earning below Rs 5,000 a month would rather send their children to private schools and would prefer that the government paid their wards' fees in private schools rather than run government schools, a survey, 'Education for The Poor', conducted by the NGO Centre for Civil Society and AS Nielson ORG MARG, has found.

While 14 per cent of such parents are already sending their children to private recognised schools, 98 per cent of parents sending children to government schools felt that they should be financially assisted to send children to private schools rather than force children to study in badly run government institutions.

Majority of parents underestimated the cost of education in government schools and were ready to settle for half the amount given in vouchers to pay fees in private schools.

When parents were asked how much they were willing to pay for government school education, if they had to pay for it themselves, the average answer was Rs 66 a month.

When asked what they thought it cost the government, they said Rs 100 per month per child. Nearly 37 per cent of them felt the government was spending just Rs 50. In reality, these schools cost the taxpayers Rs 800 per month per child, says the NGO.

The survey explored the poorest households of Delhi, government school teachers and the managements of private schools to measure their satisfaction with the current system of education and test the concept of education vouchers as a possible solution.

While 28 per cent of poor consumers expressed lack of confidence in government school education, they preferred to pay for private education rather than go for free government education.

The study says that private schools catering to poor households charged a fee of Rs 241 a month for primary classes and Rs 341 per month for secondary classes. It says this is half the cost of government school education. However, the cost of infrastructure and salaries is left out by the study while making such an assertion.

On education vouchers, the NGO which has been vigorously participating in policy making forums, says that the idea found acceptance among majority of respondents. Under the education voucher scheme, the government gives poor parents the funds necessary to pay for school education in the form of a voucher.

Parents choose the school for their child and pay for it with the voucher. This is an alternative to the current system of building government schools and hiring teachers to educate the poor.

It gives poor parents the choice of exiting a bad school and affording better education outside the realm of government schools, if they so wish, says the NGO. It says that 98 per cent of parents interviewed liked the concept and felt that they would find Rs 436 per month as an acceptable amount to receive in education vouchers.