Does community involvement affect teacher effort? Assessing learning impacts of Free Primary Education in Kenya.

Atuhurra, Julius (2014): Does community involvement affect teacher effort? Assessing learning impacts of Free Primary Education in Kenya.

Abstract

While the school participation impacts of the Universal Primary Education policies in Sub-Saharan Africa have been impressive, learning impacts’ assessment has received little attention. This study measures and explains the initial achievement impacts of the Free Primary Education (FPE) policy in Kenya using grade six pupils’ reading and math standardized test scores. We find large achievement declines, spillover effects to private schools and heterogeneous impacts by gender and socioeconomic status. The declines are associated with decreased teacher efforts and local community disengagement. Policy studies on pathways to increased local community involvement in public schools will lead to improved learning.

• Item Type: MPRA Paper
• Language: English
• Keywords: Educational policy Learning achievement Teacher Effort Community involvement
• Subjects: H - Public Economics > H4 - Publicly Provided Goods > H44 - Publicly Provided Goods: Mixed Markets; I - Health, Education, and Welfare > I2 - Education and Research Institutions > I20 - General; I - Health, Education, and Welfare > I2 - Education and Research Institutions > I21 - Analysis of Education

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