Education reforms based on data can cut govt spending by Rs 1.5 trn: Study

The government can sharply reduce education spends by paying heed to the research findings by two Indian economists

Reform — but not needlessly. That’s the message for Indian education policymakers from the research findings of two Indian economists — Sandip Datta of Delhi School of Economics and Geeta Gandhi Kingdon of University College London. The fiscally-strapped Indian state can save around Rs 1.5 trillion a year on education spends if it acts on data and evidence instead of preconceived notions, the paper says.

Conventional wisdom in India and abroad has led experts, economists, academics and even parents to believe that large class sizes in schools have an adverse effect on learning. Low learning outcomes have typically been blamed