How can the government ensure that private schools deliver quality?

Ideally, we want private schools to keep parents’ and children’s interests at the centre. But what are their interests? How do they define quality? The honest answer is we do not know. Not all parents likely define quality the same way. What parents seek from a school varies and depends on a complex interplay of personal circumstances, experiences, their own education, and their child’s needs, among other factors. If the government does not know what quality means to different parents, it cannot prescribe a single model that works for everyone.

Currently, our education laws prescribe how schools ought to educate children. Through a series of prescriptive norms, the government dictates all aspects of school education: infrastructure, operations, fees, ownership structure, type of teachers, textbooks, curriculum, and nature of assessments. These norms remain the same regardless of the type of school (low-fee or high-fee), the neighbourhood in which it is situated, or the children it caters to. This standardisation leaves little room for schools to respond to the needs and aspirations of parents and innovate. By imposing a one-size-fits-all model, the government prevents schools from discovering what works for different communities.

We would likely find it absurd if the government were to adopt a similar approach in other sectors. Wouldn’t it be odd if, along with laying down minimum safety and hygiene standards, the government also dictates how restaurants should deliver the perfect dining experience to their customers? Or if they lay down detailed rules on how educational YouTube channels deliver their content?

We would likely find it absurd if the government were to adopt a similar approach in other sectors. Along with laying down minimum safety and hygiene standards, would the government also dictate how restaurants should deliver the perfect dining experience to their customers? Or lay down detailed rules on how educational YouTube channels deliver their content? The absurdity of such interventions in other sectors reveals the problem with micromanaging education.

Innovation and improvements in quality will come in education as they do in any other sector, by letting a thousand flowers bloom. How do we encourage more enterprising players to set up schools and experiment with different approaches to school education? Make it easy and attractive to do so. As more schools open, they will begin to compete for students and find ways to differentiate themselves. Schools that deliver quality or make education more affordable will benefit from higher enrolment, and those that do not will eventually close.

Competition eases the government’s burden. They do not have to identify the single right way to educate 260+ million children in India. Schools competing with one another, experimenting, and responding to parents’ needs will create a plethora of options and approaches. These will cater to students and parents with different definitions of quality. The government should instead focus on ensuring that parents receive accurate information from schools and on checking against fraud and negligence by school owners.