Education Participation in Sri Lanka

1
Education Participation in Sri Lanka Why all
are not in school

• Nisha Arunatilake
• Institute of Policy Studies of Sri Lanka

2
Background

• Formal education in Sri Lanka is provided through
  an extensive network of more than 10,000 schools
  spread across the country
• Since the Free education act of 1949 education
  has been free up to first degree University level
• Only 93 of 5-14 year olds are in school
• 97 - among the richest one fifth
• 92 among the poorest one fifth

3
Background contd

• Since 1987 Education has been decentralized
• But all policies formulated and implemented from
  the centre
• Provincial authorities largely limited to
  administrative functions
• Ambitious development plans, but funding problems
  impeding implementation
• Often recurrent expenditure takes priority over
  much needed physical and human capital investment
  related expenditure

4
Background contd.

• Although education is provided free of charge,
  out of pocket expenditure on education is quite
  high
• 27 of total spending on education from private
  sources on
• tuition , books, stationery and clothing
• Although education is accessible in terms
  distance and affordability, wide disparities in
  quality of available education

5
Availability of resources in govt. Schools
WP NP/EP NCP UP Urban Rural Estate
Divided classes () 72 96 15 94 95 93 73
Separate Furniture for students () 62 28 48 58 53 61 71
Teacher availability () 97 82 89 84 96 93 77
Student Teacher ratio 20 31 18 21 24 21 15
6
Children in communities with poor school
resources by expenditure quintile (per cent)
1 (poorest) 2 3 4 5
Poor ed. inputs 66 61 61 56 46
Teacher vacancies 50 44 47 35 31
Poor phy. facilities 79 75 79 70 60
Sample size 1519 1398 1278 1145 962
7
Motivation for the present study

• In January 1998, Sri Lanka legislated compulsory
  education for 5-14 year olds
• Implemented through local committees whose job is
  to confront parents of non-schooling children to
  persuade them to send children to school
• Persuasion alone may not succeed in getting
  children to attend school
• This study evaluates the reasons for school
  non-attendance
• It hopes to help formulate policy that would
  facilitate school participation

8
Data

• Sri Lanka Integrated Survey 1999/2000
• 7,500 households representing all provinces in
  500 urban rural and estate communities
• The survey collected information both at the
  household and the community levels

9
Sample and Estimation

• Sample is restricted to children between 5 to 14
  years
• Dependent variable school participation
• Results estimated using binary logit

10
Explanatory Variables

• School quality indicators
• Poor resources (learning and teaching) m0.56
• Teacher vacancies m0.38
• Poor school facilities m0.71
• Out of pocket expenditure on education (annual
  community averages)
• Essential school expenditure mRs. 1,160
• Tuition expenditure mRs.630

11
Explanatory Variables

• Individual characteristics
• gender, age
• Household characteristics
• Time to school, ethnicity, sector, province
• Number of children in the hh
• Education of hh_head and spouse
• Employment of hh_head
• Expenditure/Income group
• Community level characteristics
• Main livelihood of community

12
Main Findings

• School Quality Indicators
• Teacher vacancies
• Negatively affected school attendance
• In overall, richest, poorest and under_9
• Poor Physical facilities in school
• Unexpectedly, positively influences school
  participation of children nine and younger
• Possibly due to subjective evaluation of school
  facilities

13
Main Findings

• Direct costs of schooling
• Tuition expenditure
• Negatively influences school participation
• In the overall and poorest, 9 or less, 9 plus
  samples
• Essential school expenditure (text books,
  stationery, etc.)
• Negatively influences school participation
• In the poorest and the 9 plus samples

14
Main Findings

• Location and Community Level Characteristics
• Community livelihood
• Being in a community where main livelihood is
  agriculture or fishing negatively influences
  school participation
• Overall, poorest and richest samples, and 9 or
  less (?)

15
Main Findings

• Other HH characteristics
• Ethnicity influences school participation
  significantly
• Relative to Sinhalese (main ethnic group)
  children from other ethnic groups less likely to
  be in schools (explanation teacher vacancies?/
  cultural factors?)
• Employment of hh_head
• HH_head owning a farm, in informal employment or
  not working negatively affects schooling
• HH composition
• Children from HHs with young kids (0 to 6) less
  likely to be in school

16
Main Findings

• Access to schools
• Did not influence school participation
  significantly
• HH expenditure/income
• Relative to children in the richest group
  children in the poorest group, less likely to
  attend school

17
Main Findings

• Individual level characteristics
• Being a male (in the poorer samples) decreased
  the likelihood of attending school
• (unusual for most developing countries/ possibly
  due to larger opportunity cost of attending
  school)
• Age
• Children seem to start schooling late (not at age
  5) and drop out as they age school attendance
  is highest for children in 9 11 age group

18
Summary

• Poverty influences schooling negatively
• School quality affects schooling decision
• (teacher vacancies/ tuition expenditure)
• Opportunity costs of schooling affects schooling
  decision
• Being in an agricultural/ fishing community
• Employment of hh_head
• Coming from families with small children

19
Summary

• Limited know-how/ motivation of parents affects
  schooling
• Starting school late, cultural factors

20
Discussion

• Appointment of local communities to compel
  parents to send children to school is not a
  sustainable solution
• Despite governments attempts to assist school
  attendance through the provision of free uniforms
  and text books, high out of pocket expenditure is
  keeping children away from school

21
Discussion

• Children from farming communities and families
  owning farms are probably not attending school
  due to high opportunity costs. School calendars
  in these areas should take into account the high
  demand periods for farm labour
• More attention should be given to improve quality
  of schooling

22
Discussion

• Lastly, inadequacy of government funding seems to
  affect many problems related to school quality.
  Especial attention should be given to improve
  funding for the sector either public or private
• Thank you