Giving Compass' Take:

· Shreya Roy Chowdhury at India Development Review analyzes a survey from the Azim Premji Foundation showing that Indian parents don't feel that they get their money's worth from sending their children to private schools. 

· How can funders help to improve the quality of education options available in India? 

· Read more about private schools in India. 

Indian parents send their children to fee-charging primary schools thinking they will get an English-medium education. In reality, over half of them are taught in Indian languages.

A survey of 1,210 families with 2,464 children, conducted earlier this year by the Azim Premji Foundationin four states, shows that parents do not always make sound choices when it comes to educating their children. Often, the reality in schools does not match what parents believe about them, the foundation’s report, School Choice in Low-Information Environments, notes.

The concept of “school choice” envisions an educational system that is not tightly regulated and gives parents a variety of public and private institutions to choose from. This encourages competition among schools since parents, by exercising school choice, help weed out the less popular ones. The concept itself—and any policy based on it—presume a high level of awareness and understanding on the part of parents.

Read the full article about private schools by Shreya Roy Chowdhury at India Development Review.