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The impact of vouchers on preschool attendance and elementary school readiness: A randomized controlled trial in rural China

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  • Wong, Ho Lun
  • Luo, Renfu
  • Zhang, Linxiu
  • Rozelle, Scott

Abstract

Although preschool has been shown to improve children's school readiness in many developing countries, preschool attendance in poor rural areas of China is still low. The high cost of preschool is often regarded as a major barrier to attendance. In this paper, we evaluate the impact of a one-year voucher/CCT intervention on preschool attendance and school readiness. To do so, we conducted a randomized controlled trial among 150 young children in a poor, rural county in China. Our analysis shows that the intervention, consisting of a tuition waiver and a cash transfer conditional on attendance, raised attendance by 20 percentage points (or by 35%). However, the intervention did not have measurable impact on children's school readiness. We believe that poor quality of preschool education in rural China (in terms of both teaching and facilities) contributes to our findings.

Suggested Citation

  • Wong, Ho Lun & Luo, Renfu & Zhang, Linxiu & Rozelle, Scott, 2013. "The impact of vouchers on preschool attendance and elementary school readiness: A randomized controlled trial in rural China," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 35(C), pages 53-65.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ecoedu:v:35:y:2013:i:c:p:53-65
    DOI: 10.1016/j.econedurev.2013.03.004
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    Cited by:

    1. Shiying Zhang, 2017. "Effects of attending preschool on adolescents’ outcomes: evidence from China," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 49(27), pages 2618-2629, June.
    2. Rao, Nirmala & Umayahara, Mami & Yang, Yi & Ranganathan, Namita, 2021. "Ensuring access, equity and quality in early childhood education in Bangladesh, China, India and Myanmar: Challenges for nations in a populous economic corridor," International Journal of Educational Development, Elsevier, vol. 82(C).
    3. Paulo Bastos & Nicolas L. Bottan & Julian Cristia, 2017. "Access to Preprimary Education and Progression in Primary School: Evidence from Rural Guatemala," Economic Development and Cultural Change, University of Chicago Press, vol. 65(3), pages 521-547.
    4. Hua Zhou & Di Mo & Renfu Luo & Ai Yue & Scott Rozelle, 2016. "Are Children with Siblings Really More Vulnerable Than Only Children in Health, Cognition and Non-cognitive Outcomes? Evidence from a Multi-province Dataset in China," China & World Economy, Institute of World Economics and Politics, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, vol. 24(3), pages 3-17, May.
    5. Pr Henri Atangana Ondoa, 2018. "The effects of heavily indebted poor countries initiative (HIPC) on millennium development goals (MDGs) for education," Review of Social Economy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 76(4), pages 453-479, October.
    6. David K Evans & Fei Yuan, 2022. "What We Learn about Girls’ Education from Interventions That Do Not Focus on Girls," The World Bank Economic Review, World Bank, vol. 36(1), pages 244-267.
    7. Hu, Bi Ying & Fan, Xitao & Wu, Zhongling & LoCasale-Crouch, Jennifer & Yang, Ning & Zhang, Juan, 2017. "Teacher-child interactions and children's cognitive and social skills in Chinese preschool classrooms," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 79(C), pages 78-86.
    8. Li, Ling & Chen, Xu & Wu, Dandan & Li, Hui, 2020. "Effects of attending preschool on adolescents’ reading literacy: Evidence from the ethnic minority children in China," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 116(C).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Preschool attendance; School readiness; Voucher and conditional cash transfer; Randomized controlled trials; Educational performance; Rural China;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • H75 - Public Economics - - State and Local Government; Intergovernmental Relations - - - State and Local Government: Health, Education, and Welfare
    • I22 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Educational Finance; Financial Aid
    • I28 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Government Policy

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