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Explaining School Enrolment Trends in Kerala, India

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  • Janakumaran Nair Retnakumar
  • Perianayagam Arokiasamy

    (International Institute for Population Sciences, Mumbai.)

Abstract

An inevitable consequence of demographic transition in the Indian state of Kerala is the rapidly declining school enrolment in government-funded lower primary schools. So far studies dealing with demographic transition and falling school enrolment concluded that fertility decline is the sole reason for this. A major limitation of these studies is that they focused only on students enrolled in schools affiliated to the Directorate of Public Instruction without accounting for the enrolments of parallel fee-charging private unaided English-medium schools in the state. Based on the enrolment statistics of the Directorate of Public Instruction, studies argued that fertility decline is the main reason for school enrolment decline, leading to the emergence of uneconomic schools. Our analysis shows that aside from fertility decline, the poor quality of teaching in government-funded schools and the resultant exodus to private unaided English-medium schools is significant in accounting for decline in enrolments. The retention of students in government-funded schools can be sustained only by improving the quality of school education.

Suggested Citation

  • Janakumaran Nair Retnakumar & Perianayagam Arokiasamy, 2006. "Explaining School Enrolment Trends in Kerala, India," Journal of South Asian Development, , vol. 1(2), pages 231-248, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:soudev:v:1:y:2006:i:2:p:231-248
    DOI: 10.1177/097317410600100204
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Jimenez, E. & Lockheed, M.E., 1995. "Public and Private Secondary Education in Developing Countries. A Comparative Study," World Bank - Discussion Papers 309, World Bank.
    2. Kingdon, Geeta, 1996. "The Quality and Efficiency of Private and Public Education: A Case-Study of Urban India," Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics, Department of Economics, University of Oxford, vol. 58(1), pages 57-82, February.
    3. Jimenez, Emmanuel & Lockheed, Marlaine E & Paqueo, Vicente, 1991. "The Relative Efficiency of Private and Public Schools in Developing Countries," The World Bank Research Observer, World Bank, vol. 6(2), pages 205-218, July.
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