The Economics and Politics of Education.
Amitbhaduri
Professor, Emeritus, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi
Education is both a consumption good and an investment good, but with one important difference. As a consumption good it is mostly a private good, as an investment good it is a public as well as a private good.The public good character of education means privatization of education would lead to underinvestment, as the benefits that are public will not be captured by the private investor. This applies to education at all levels, perhaps more to the lower level.The private return on education depends on job prospect which may increase with the level of education for an individual, but macro-economically it depends on the total number of available jobs. The analogy is like this: with more education an individual comes more in front of a queue, say in a ration shop, but the total ration and the length of the queue (which when inadequate) remains unchanged, and deprives the less educated. Education improves individual chance without changing employment situation.
The relation between education, social control and privilege operates largely through network and is reflected indirectly in earning differentials not resulting from higher or lower skill. Argument about meritocracy, rejection of a common school system etc revolve partly around this issue of institutionalized privilege. The relation between education and social prejudice (e.g. caste, religious intolerance etc) is often misunderstood or over simplified. Prejudices based on privilege are unlikely to be corrected by more education. It is not information failure but class/group privilege
Similarly, if we take a narrow legal view of rights, understanding rights theoretically requires education. But awareness of operational rights (usually group rights) which are legal as well as acquired through social/political movements require not more education, but social movements and campaigns.Undue emphasis on education is often an expression of the privilege of being more educated. As a matter of fact ‘good education’ is often a method of inculcating conformity. What is ‘good’ education should be defined in a social context, as it depends on the way the society is organized and needs to be changed.
Amitbhaduri
Professor, Emeritus, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi
Education is both a consumption good and an investment good, but with one important difference. As a consumption good it is mostly a private good, as an investment good it is a public as well as a private good.The public good character of education means privatization of education would lead to underinvestment, as the benefits that are public will not be captured by the private investor. This applies to education at all levels, perhaps more to the lower level.The private return on education depends on job prospect which may increase with the level of education for an individual, but macro-economically it depends on the total number of available jobs. The analogy is like this: with more education an individual comes more in front of a queue, say in a ration shop, but the total ration and the length of the queue (which when inadequate) remains unchanged, and deprives the less educated. Education improves individual chance without changing employment situation.
The relation between education, social control and privilege operates largely through network and is reflected indirectly in earning differentials not resulting from higher or lower skill. Argument about meritocracy, rejection of a common school system etc revolve partly around this issue of institutionalized privilege. The relation between education and social prejudice (e.g. caste, religious intolerance etc) is often misunderstood or over simplified. Prejudices based on privilege are unlikely to be corrected by more education. It is not information failure but class/group privilege
Similarly, if we take a narrow legal view of rights, understanding rights theoretically requires education. But awareness of operational rights (usually group rights) which are legal as well as acquired through social/political movements require not more education, but social movements and campaigns.Undue emphasis on education is often an expression of the privilege of being more educated. As a matter of fact ‘good education’ is often a method of inculcating conformity. What is ‘good’ education should be defined in a social context, as it depends on the way the society is organized and needs to be changed.
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