Education contracting: scope of future research

The impact of education contracting models

By: Patrinos H
Published by: John F. Kennedy School of Government (KSG), Harvard University , 2005
Via: Eldis

This paper reviews evidence on the impact of education contracting models such as school voucher programmes and voucher-like initiatives, charter school and private finance of school infrastructure arrangements. The paper seeks to compare and contrast this evidence in several developing as well as European countries, and the United States. The author concludes that information on school contracting is mixed, according to the type of option. Namely, information on voucher programmes in the US as well as charter school experiments is extensive. However, there is much less information available concerning other countries. Therefore, impact evaluations are needed to increase the information base so that policymakers can make informed decisions. There is a need for multi-country, multi-institutional, multi-year initiative, with various sources of funding, and a common methodological framework. The research could go beyond even analysing what works, but rather why it works or not, how and under what circumstances.