Education comment on behalf of Tayo

Derek Newberry — Wed, 20 Sep 2006 10:36:54 -0400

Tayo had a hard time posting this (we are trying to fix the comment issue as we speak!) so here are her remarks:

Great analysis, Derek. This post sets up what could be an interesting comparison between domestic (US) and BoP issues in public education. While many have and do applaud the introduction of charter schools as a market-based alternative to the public school system, there is still a
healthy amount of debate about the effectiveness of these schools and
the degree to which they contribute to or detract from the solution to
the public education problem.

Then there's the issue of how effectively public policy addresses the
problem, aka the "No Child Left Behind" Act. It seems as though the "funding
for test scores" strategy has encouraged some gaming of the system,
whereby teachers are teaching kids the fine art of passing standardized
tests rather than the fine art of fine art, for example. Cynically
speaking though, kids who will pursue higher education have a long career of
standardized test-taking ahead, so I guess they'd might as well get started. : D

Obviously, I'm not breaking new ground here, but it'd be interesting to
hear the perspective of someone who actually knows something about our
embattled public education system.

Tayo,

I wouldn't consider myself to be an expert voice either, so I will refrain from weighing in too heavily on this, but my personal ethics and leanings have led me to this observation: Many of the traditional reforms demanded by the IMF including adoption of a Value-Added Tax and privatization of every government service possible are steps that not even developed countries have taken.

I agree that the US public education system leaves much to be desired, but I think NCLB failed to make real positive changes because it was never fully funded. I hate to advocate throwing money at a problem, but money does matter, and I think our education system doesn't have enough of it. Back to the original point, the gap in what we tell developing countries to do and what we practice is why I am careful to commend private schools in India and Africa without reservation- I believe a strong public system is necessary, and especially so in countries with a large portion of the population in poverty.
-Derek

BOP Schools Provide Temporary Relief for Troubled Public Education Systems

Derek Newberry — Mon, 18 Sep 2006 11:28:53 -0400

“The accepted wisdom is wrong,” says James Tooley, winner of the FT’s recent essay contest, as he rips into the prevailing notion that developing country education problems can be solved with more aid. He continues his tirade, attacking development experts that on the one hand prioritize financial assistance for state education but on the other hand, acknowledge that benefits from this aid will have to wait until state education can be reformed and rid of corruption:

“It ignores the reality that poor parents are abandoning public schools en masse, to send their children to “budget” private schools that charge low fees – perhaps one or two dollars per month, affordable even to parents on poverty-line wages.” Tooley hits upon a central element of the BOP hypothesis- that in cases where the government is unable to provide needed services to the poor, the private sector can and should step in.

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Education comment on behalf of Tayo

BOP Schools Provide Temporary Relief for Troubled Public Education Systems