frugal innovation in education: the case of chains of low-cost private schools (by james tooley)
DESCRIPTION
The revolution of low cost private education is taking place across the developing world. In poor urban and peri-urban areas, private school children make up a majority of schoolchildren; even in rural areas, a substantial minority of parents is using private schools. Research has shown that children in low cost private schools outperform those in public government schools, even if they operate at a fraction of the cost. Importantly, low cost private schools are generally financially sustainable, and hence provide a scalable solution to the problem of providing education for all. In his talk, J. Tooley will examine this background revolution and follow educational entrepreneurs who are creating chains of low cost private schools. Such chains are attracting investment and creating radical innovations that have the potential to transform educational opportunities for the poor.TRANSCRIPT
Frugal innovation: The case of chains of low cost private schools
James Tooley, Barcelona, 26 November 2012
http://egwestcentre.com https://www.facebook.com/egwestcentre
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Two Questions: What proportion of children are enrolled in low cost private schools?How good are they?
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The (Minimum) RealityLagos State, Nigeria % of pupils
Private Unrecognised
33%
Government26%
Private Recognised41%
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Survey of 24,000 children
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19
Delhi –raw scores
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
maths English Hindi
Subject
Me
an s
co
re (
%)
Government
Private unrecognised
Private recognised
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Predicted scores for average child, Delhi
-0.5
-0.4
-0.3
-0.2
-0.1
0.0
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
Maths English Hindi
Gov
Priv
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Sierra Leone@james_tooley
South Sudan
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South Sudan
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Liberia
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% of total enrolment
Proprietor, 60.10%Small church; 22.90%
Es-tab-lishe
d church;
13.50%
NGO; 0.40%Mosque; 2.00% Government; 1.10%
100,000 children, in poor areas of Monrovia
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Pay your taxes for schools?
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The Holy Grail(s) of Development
Sustainability
• The capacity to endure
Scalability
• Moving from one to many
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300,000 low cost private schools across India
80,000 low cost private schools across Anglophone West Africa
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No school
Government school
Low cost private school
Current choices for Poor Parents
Higher quality low cost private school
The 4th Choice
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From zero to 12,000 in 3 years
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Building the education model
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Getting the business model right
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A sustainable, scalable business
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We grew from 0 to 12,000 students (20 schools) from 2009 to 2012. We will grow to 200,000 students in next 5 years.
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Local knowledge leads to innovation
Pay-as-you-learn.This innovation extends access.
NO HIDDEN CHARGES!
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Cost per child per term (GHS)Cost Item OMEGA SCHOOLS PUBLIC SCHOOL
School Fees 0.00
Food 22.95
Transport 0.00
PTA 1.57
Examination Fees 0.92
Extra Classes 9.27
School Uniforms 12.12
Stationery 7.32
Total Per Child Per Term (GHS)
66.67 54.16
Public/OMEGA 81%
Based on figures from Akaguri (2010)@james_tooley
Innovations for management
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Innovations for Learning
Ω Daily lesson plans
Ω Students’ workbooks
Ω Teacher training
Ω Innovative education technology
Ω Assessment system
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Omega Learning System
Ω Peer Learning
Ω KEY POINT: Open to innovations that promote learning.
Ω Question: Why is innovation for learning easy with us and difficult in the public schools?
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Fit with Conference Aims
• Highlights a major trend in ‘grassroots’ educational reform
• Explores question of globalisation and standardisation
• Implicitly extends an answer to the question posed in the introduction: why hasn’t change happened?
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