By: Sasekea Harris
Introduction & Background
The last decade has seen the increased use of privatization as a policy instrument for economic development throughout the world. This process according to Mostert (2002, p.1) has been part of a broader process of economic restructuring that has taken place over the last two decades. This process of economic restructuring is often referred to as globalization.
The saturation of our lives by the phenomenon of globalization has given birth to the contemporary issue privatization, which has successfully permeated air transportation and the utilities sectors, namely, water, electricity and telecommunications, and which has progressively penetrated the educational milieu on all three tiers: primary, secondary and tertiary. Being a player in the delivery of quality education, this will directly impact on the content and structure of the lessons prepared and delivered to learners, against a background that warrants individual and national development. Therefore, privatization has consequences for my work.
Additionally, schools are already largely privatized at the primary level in Jamaica. These schools are referred to as preparatory schools. In this arrangement, the parents/ guardian take full responsibility for all school fees, the government pays nothing and sometimes purchases places for students who cannot afford to pay; private bodies for example, churches, develop and deliver their own curriculum or the state’s curriculum and they are expected to register with the Ministry of Education in Jamaica. Primary level education in Jamaica is provided to children between the ages of 6-11 in Grades 1-6. Promotion from the primary level of education to the secondary level occurs in two main ways: by automatic transfer and by selective placement through the Grade Six Achievement Test (GSAT) previously Common Entrance examination (CEE) (Planning Institute of Jamaica 2006, pp. 19.8-19.9).
There are a large number of private schools at the primary level in Jamaica. According to Douglas (2005, Section 1 p.7) the fight for scarce places, especially in the traditional high schools - determined by the Grade Six Achievement Test (GSAT) - has kept preparatory schools viable, particularly in the island's urban centers. According to the independent schools registry, there are 152 preparatory schools listed. These are summarized below:
Table 1: Private Schools Per Parish in Jamaica
PARISH NUMBER OF PREPARATORY SCHOOLS
Kingston & St. Andrew 53
St. Thomas 4
Portland 6
St. Mary 3
St. Ann 10
Trelawny 3
St. James 21
Hanover 4
Westmoreland 9
St. Elizabeth 7
Manchester 10
Clarendon 8
St. Catherine 18
TOTAL 152
Source: Douglas (2005 Section 1 p.7)
Arguably, these are the schools which tend to be successful in a number of ways. They are nationally known for quality teachers, high GSAT passes, better resources, a higher level of discipline and less populated classrooms. In fact, Ruel Reid, President of the Jamaica Teachers’ Association (JTA), as well as Jones, the independent schools registrar corroborate these assertions. Reid (2005) as cited in Douglas (2005, Section 1 p.7) states that “More parents and guardians are turning to private schools for primary and secondary education options for their charges, pushed by deficiencies in the quality and levels of access to the public education system”.
Jones (2005) as cited in Douglas (2005, Section 1 p.7) further states “because the schools are smaller, teachers know the students better and are better able to control them”. A look at the main scholarship winners in the last GSAT exams shows that preparatory school students were awarded 17 scholarships compared to the 10 that went to state-run primary school students (Douglas 2005, Section 1 p.7).
Moreover, of interest are some three hundred (300) students who were not provided with places in the public school system, but had places purchased by the education ministry for them in the private schools. According to Jones (2005) in Douglas (2005, Section 1 p.7) "They have seen improvement both in discipline and morale”. Jones (2005) attributed this outcome to “the smaller classroom size” and “teachers being able to focus on students’ needs rather than just teaching the curriculum”.
Given these noticeable successes of private schools at the primary level, this paper seeks to explore the possibility to which privatization in the form of complete divestiture could be explored not only on a small scale (152 preparatory schools) but on a large scale, where there would be only preparatory schools and no state schools.
Accordingly, this paper will simply be considering, hypothetically, the possible implications of not having state primary schools in Jamaica; the implications of fully expanding and modifying an already existing model of privatization. In this hypothetical model being proposed, the government would not be directly involved in providing education. Instead, its role would become one of steering and regulating of the process in lieu of being a provider. Jamaicans would therefore need to pay for education. However, they can seek sponsorship from the government. Also, in this model, the content would be planned and delivered by private companies.
In presenting the implications, the pros and cons of this hypothetical model will be outlined, and the role of the Jamaican government will be brought to the fore. The theories of Liberalization and New Public Management will therefore ground this discourse. Although there are other models of privatization that could be considered for primary level education in Jamaica, for example, contracting, as is the case in parts of the United Kingdom (UK), this paper will only focus on complete divestiture.
Considering the Implications of No State Schools at the Primary Level in Jamaica
a) Primary Education is an Inimitable Industry
Privatization has had significant successes in the utilities and air transport industries in Jamaica. For example, according to Sampson (2004, p.7) the “Telecommunications Company was bought by 80% Cable & Wireless and 20% by public issue on the stock market”. Under state ownership, Sampson notes that Jamaica Telephone Company (JTC) “installed 5,000 phones per year”. However, “under private ownership this increased to 50,000 phones per year for several years”. Additionally, as a result of the public firm being privatised, “Jamaica now has one of the most modern telecommunications systems, fully digitalized with a major digiport” (Sampson 2004, p.7).
Additionally, “over 20% of the population now have phones…instead of waiting for 18 months and paying bribes, the service can be available within a day” (Sampson 2004, p. 7). This highlights the performance of the public telecommunications firm under privatization. In fact, Redwood (1990, as cited in Gayle and Goodrich, 1990, p.55) notes that “the sale of the Jamaican Telephone Company shares to Cable & Wireless is an example of how foreign exchange can be released by partial denationalization”. Privatization in this sense has set the stage for both individual and national development.
Air Jamaica too has had a few successes under privatization. Air Jamaica Ltd (2007, p.3) reveals that under privatization, the airline embarked on an intensive revitalization programme. With the new tag line Soaring to New Heights, the new direction included the fleet renewal programme, the introduction of air service to new destinations, the expansion of on-board amenities, such as complimentary beer, wine and champagne on every flight, upgraded meal service supervised by the world’s only Flying Chef, and red carpet check-in (Air Jamaica Ltd 2007, pp.3-4). These indicate that Air Jamaica performed well in terms of route expansion and in flight services which is a reflection of national growth.
It was believed that these industries were being inefficiently operated by the state and that only an injection of privatization principles embedded within the theory of New Public Management, could have taken these industries to a significant level of success. The foregoing evidence substantiates this. However, the performance of these industries was not without problems.
Although the industries received some successes, failures also occurred. For example, under privatization, the unaudited accounts for Air Jamaica for 2003 showed that it incurred a loss of around US$76.5 million. Also, the Jamaican newspaper headlines conveyed the flavour of loss for Air Jamaica. In almost every one of the Jamaican Daily Gleaner newspaper articles examined between 1997 and 2005 the words “debt” and “losses” were consistently attributed to Air Jamaica while it was a privatized entity. For example: “The airline is a sustained loss-maker wracking up a deficit of more than US$1billion in a decade (Collister 2005, p.34). As well as, the airline is “virtually insolvent” (Green 2004, pp. A1, A3).
This revealed that the airline was experiencing an adverse economic climate for an extended period of time. It is worthy to note that the use of the phrase “sustained loss-maker” and “crash strapped” suggests that economic efficiency and profitability were fleeting illusions for the airline under privatization. Furthermore, Air Jamaica has lost approximately US$700 million over the ten year period as a private company, with an accumulated deficit of US$832.9 million at December 31, 2004 (Collister 2005, p.34). It is arguably true that this deficit is a significant increase on what it was when the company was under public ownership (US$131.8 million in deficit) (Collister 2005, p.34).
Although the evidence is twofold, these successes have raised questions for the author, on the possibility of similar successes if privatization principles were to be extended on a large scale to the primary education system. Inarguably though, one must realise that education has features that are unique and inherently absent in other successfully privatized industries on a large scale. For example, education unlike water, electricity and telecommunications, is expected to prepare the individual for participation in society.
This warrants the preparation of all individuals, regardless of an ability to pay for education and regardless of aptitude, to be equipped with the necessary skills to participate in society. This is especially true for primary education, as, for some Jamaicans, education ends at this level, because of an inability to pay for education at the secondary level. This raises questions on the level of preparedness of private firms to undertake this task on a larger scale, given the large expenses associated with educating persons unable to pay, amidst a profit maximization modus operandi. To date, based on observations, they have not demonstrated this, as private schools in Jamaica remain largely inaccessible to those without the money and without the brains. Therefore, although complete divestiture has its advantages, this highlights an important disadvantage.
Furthermore, since the 1990s, the Organization of Eastern Caribbean Development (OECD) has changed the balance of focus within its educational policies. Increasingly, education and not telecommunications, water, electricity and transport, has come to be seen as central to human capital formation for the health of national economies in the face of international competition and global pressures (Lauder, Brown, Dillabough and Halsey 2006, p.252).
Again, private firms would need to prove themselves capable of balancing this necessary public aim with their private aim of profit maximization. If they are unable to do this, complete divestiture would be unfavourable for those who are unable to pay. However, on the other hand, as the evidence in the foregoing section revealed, it is the schools that are privatised that are successful. Therefore, complete divestiture in this regard could further this aim of the OECD with its quality education that is necessary for human capital. In this regard, complete divestiture of primary education in Jamaica would be of advantage to the individual as well as the nation, and in this way would have favourable consequences for my work.
Additionally, it is education, not water, nor telecommunications and electricity, that provides this link between the individual and society. “If the history of their society is brought alive to children, they will come to see that they are part of something larger than themselves: they will develop a sense of commitment to the social group” (Haralambos and Holborn 2000, p.777). Education is therefore an inimitable industry.
Furthermore, it is education - schools, not air and water, nor telecommunications and electricity that is referred to as “society in miniature” (Durkheim 1961). Accordingly, it is education – the school that is expected to transmit the culture of the society. This approach - education as transmission and curriculum as content, regards decisions of content as important. It is “that which derives from the view that the curriculum should be concerned to transmit the culture of the society…their purposes must be seen in terms of socialization… of children into the ways of life of society (Kelly 2004, p. 48).
Based on observations, private schools at the primary level have so far successfully engaged learners in this process by adapting the state curriculum, although with a few modifications. For example, Ananda Marga Preparatory school, with former Hindu Dada Para Pidyananda as its principal, located on Crieffe Road, close to the National Stadium in St Andrew, offers the Ministry of Education's courses and curriculum to its one hundred and fifty (150) students, as well as music, Spanish, self-defense and computer lessons. “Dada, who defines himself as a spiritual person, said the school does not emphasize any particular religious practice”. Yet, no meat is served at the school's canteen. They are strictly vegetarian. However, according to Dada “If parents or children don't like the vegetarian food, they can bring their own lunch" (Douglas 2006, Section 4 p.2)
However, one should note that this is with the existence of their competitors – public primary schools who are engaging the process as well. This therefore raises questions on the extent to which, private contractors in the face of no public competitors, that is, no state primary schools would uncompromisingly execute the task of linking all individuals with the society, that is, preparing individuals to become participants and contributors in a technology driven, globalised market place- regardless of aptitude and an ability to pay.
It is important to note that during early emancipation where there existed only private schools and no state schools, for example, those established by the Baptists and other missionaries, the curriculum encouraged servitude and was very religious. Therefore, although education at that time should have enabled the individual to become free, it was instead used as an instrument to bind the slaves and ex-slaves to the plantations. In this sense, the complete divestiture of education could prove a disadvantage if effective systems are not put in place to ensure a balance between individualism and nationalism in the content of the education being delivered at the primary level.
This highlights the need for the Jamaican government to play a key role in the process. The government in such a hypothetical model would need to implement systems to ensure a balance between private will and national will as it relates to the curriculum. For example, the government may need to implement accreditation and regulatory bodies for primary level education to ensure this balance. This however, would not be a novel phenomenon as this is the situation for tertiary education in Jamaica.
This further suggests that caution should be warranted in the complete divestiture of primary education, as the education industry seems to display unique features and expected roles not present in other industries such as utilities and air transportation, where privatization has received immense large scale successes. Therefore, although the privatization of other industries on a large scale may have had successes, the same may not necessarily be replicated in the complete divestiture of primary level education.
b) Content of Education would be in Private Hands
There are contested definitions of the curriculum. The curriculum is defined as:
A course of learning activities set out for the learner to perform…includes all subjects and activities over which the school has responsibility….has the purpose of changing a learner’s behavior, acquiring or reinforcing certain skills and preparing him to fit properly in his society…the broad general framework of the educational programmes instituted by a school or an educational institution.
Robinson (1983, n.p.)
Clark and Starr (1981, p.11) consider the curriculum of a school to be “the totality of the experiences that a school plans for its pupils”. Taylor (1973, in Hyman-Anglin 1992, p.2) in another vein sees the curriculum as “a subject or group of subjects treated in such a way as to promote learning in students”. Regardless of the multiplicity in definitions, one thing it can be argued is certain is that, the formal curriculum is deliberately planned to reflect the knowledge, skills and values that society deems important for the child to obtain. The complete divestiture of primary education in this hypothetical model would translate into the Jamaican primary curriculum being planned by private bodies instead of the Jamaican government. The implications of this hypothetical model could reflect an advantage on the one hand and a disadvantage on the other.
In the complete divestiture of primary education, this would therefore now mean that the formal curriculum would be deliberately planned to reflect the knowledge, skills and values that private individuals or groups deem important for the child to learn. Inarguably, the danger in this hypothetical model is that this may result in the existence of several different types of curriculum reflecting private and perhaps selfish ideals not necessarily in keeping with society or facilitative of the pursuance of coordinated national goals.
This would suggests the need for a strong regulatory framework to ensure that national goals form part of the core of the content of a privatized education and to ensure that the Jamaican learner receives quality, uniform education in order to bring fruition to education for not just individual development but national development as well. This therefore alludes to the need for a role for government even in complete divestiture.
An Office of Primary Education Regulation (OPER) would need to be established, controlling cost, quality of service, and entrants to the market, as well as perhaps a uniformed curriculum, to ensure that everybody learns at least some similar and prime concepts. This OPER could perform in a similar capacity as the Office of Utilities Regulation for the regulation of utilities in Jamaica; as the Financial Services Commission, for the regulation of Financial Services in Jamaica; as the Jamaica Broadcasting Commission, for the regulation of the Jamaican media; and as the University Council of Jamaica, for the regulation and accreditation of tertiary level education. Careful planning in developing and executing the roles, functions and boundaries of this OPER would be needed in order to create a balance between regulating to ensure quality and regulating to nevertheless allow for a degree of freedom and by extension an encouragement of investments in education.
On the other hand, the privatization model – contracting, the contracting of service delivery would be better suited to ensure this need.
On the contrary, it could be argued that the complete divestiture of primary education could be of advantage as this would give parents the opportunity to examine which private schools’ values are in keeping with theirs, and so enrol their charge in such a school; thereby giving parents more autonomy in deciding what their child should learn.
c. Jamaicans Would Need to Pay for Education.
Although there are other models of privatization where the government pay the providers, in this hypothetical model of privatization, Jamaicans would pay for their own education. This has emanated from the author’s belief that when one has to pay, appreciation and care increase while waste and abuse decrease. The author is however cognizant of the advantages and disadvantages eminent in such a proposed system. Accordingly, these will be examined.
The complete divestiture of primary education in Jamaica would mean that so soon after a reinstatement of free tuition by the Bruce Golding administration, there would once again be a reversal as Jamaicans would now have to pay for tuition. Given the educational history of Jamaica, this may stem a degree of conflict between socialist ideology - those who believe that there should be free education and redistribution of wealth; and anti-socialist ideology – those who oppose free education and redistribution. A survey of the Jamaican media will reveal that this has been the situation since Mr. Golding’s announcement.
It is important to note that Jamaica was once a slave colony and throughout the centuries of enslavement, “the education of children was considered to be counterproductive to the strategic necessity of keeping slaves ignorant and oppressed” (Seaga 2007, p.G2). When emancipation dawned in Jamaica, “the progeny of freed slaves were completely unschooled, creating a mammoth problem of how to introduce education for many thousands of students of various ages”. The few schools which existed restricted enrolment to the white population, excluding Jews, children of mixed races and free blacks, until gradually, in later years, access was given to these groups (Seaga 2007, p.G2).
By 1957, the elected government of the People's National Party became involved in the education of children of the poor (Seaga 2007, p.G2). Consequently, the government then began the construction of primary and then secondary schools to compliment the education provided by the church and other missionary groups, which the people heartily welcomed. According to Seaga (2007, p.G2) “Secondary schools at the time held their own entrance examinations which enabled children of parents with means to 'buy' entry in the event of failure to gain access by merit”.
To overcome this, the CEE at the primary level of education was introduced in 1957, which would select successful entrants on merit only. This 1957 education policy declaration was aimed at improving the enrolment of students entering secondary schools, particularly among those who were unable to afford the fees (Seaga 2007, p.G2).
“By 1961, 20,000 students were sitting the CEE. Of that total, only 978 or 46 per cent of 2,133 free places to secondary schools were won by students attending primary schools, while 1,155 or 54 per cent from preparatory schools received awards” (Seaga 2007, p.G2). This indicated that only one in 86 students from primary schools had a chance of winning a free place as compared to one in four students from preparatory schools. This also indicated that only 29 per cent of the students from private schools were successful as compared to 7 per cent of those originating from primary schools. This indicates consistency in the findings both in the present and in the past, that preparatory schools fair better than primary schools.
By 1972, with a socialist ideology, “the goal was to develop an egalitarian society, a society where education was no longer a privilege enjoyed by the rich but was accessible to all” (Haynes 2007, p.1). Accordingly, free public education on the basis of space was instituted by Michael Manley, the then Prime Minister of Jamaica (Haynes 2007, p.1). It is arguably true that this was a policy welcomed by the poor but criticised by some of the rich and educated.
Consequently, this increased budget expenditure from $47,750,000 in the current year to $209,000,000 the next year. This wiped out virtually all the surplus that was to be derived from the bauxite levy which he secured in 1974 and set the stage for a necessary withdrawal from free education eventually (Seaga 2007, p.G2). This resulted in a new approach - cost sharing between the Jamaican government and people.
However, since September 2007, under a Bruce Golding led administration, the government of Jamaica no longer pays half of the tuition for students in public schools, but has now undertaken to pay full tuition for students enrolled in public schools (Jamaican Lifestyle 2007, p.1). Additionally, parents who had paid their half prior to September 2007, for the 2007/2008 academic year will have their money refunded to them by November 2007 (Jamaican Lifestyle 2007, p.1).
It is against this background that one needs to place privatization in order to correctly infer the possible implications of complete divestiture in the Jamaican primary education system of 2007. This tacitly indicates that a completely divested primary education at present, with the expectation of paid tuition, as proposed by this hypothetical model, shortly after a reinstatement of free tuition by Mr. Golding, along with such educational history would perhaps create significant uncertainties and would perhaps receive opposition from the mass.
Inarguably, opposition would be particularly true of the poor Jamaicans who are unable to pay, knotted with a possible interpretation that the government is trying to return them to the ignorance, oppression and inequality which their ancestors had experienced while in pursuit of education. This possible implication therefore reveals a disadvantage in completely divesting primary education in Jamaica, at this time.
This also indicates that perhaps completely divesting primary education would need to be slowly introduced in stages to lessen opposition. It further suggests that if primary education is to be completely divested in Jamaica, the government would need to sponsor or subsidize education for the poor upon individual requests, to enable access. On the contrary, another model of privatization that allows for this provision might be useful, for example, contracting – where the government would pay service providers, as is the case in the UK and the USA. If provisions are not made for those who cannot afford to pay, a significant portion of the Jamaican population might run the risk of being uneducated. A large uneducated Jamaican population would not be an attractive indicator of the country’s level of development.
Furthermore, “a largely uneducated population allows the political elite to preside over a corrupt administration that is likely to result in an unavoidable stream of poverty and underemployment flowing throughout the society (Woodburn 2007, p.G8). Education should therefore “not be corporatised, interpreted as luxury or seen as a privilege” which this hypothetical model of complete divestiture could encourage (Woodburn 2007, p.G8).
The case of Air Jamaica however, reveals the evils in government subsidizing private arrangements and could serve as a warning. Moreover, the history of Jamaican education, that is, a vacillation between paid and free education as revealed in the foregoing, clearly indicates that reform is needed. Reform however, in the shape of complete divestiture could nevertheless be seen as a viable option, as no system is perfect.
d) Education Would be for the Rich and Not for All
In this hypothetical model, it would follow that parents with children enrolled in primary schools would now need to find the capital to send their charges to preparatory schools. In this sense, complete divestiture may prove a disadvantage from the perspective of parents who are unable to pay. In fact, in the current system, where parents pay only the auxiliary fees, there is already grave concern that the Golding led administration has only undertaken the burden of tuition and not the other school fees as well. Accordingly, “The Minister states that the Ministry will now begin a debate about these fees, with a view to constructing policy” (Jamaican Lifestyle 2007, p.1).
Additionally, the Planning Institute of Jamaica and the Statistical Institute of Jamaica (2004, p.16-18) revealed that approximately 16.9% of the population lived below the poverty line. The gap between the wealthiest docile and the poorest is very wide and growing; the mean per capita annual consumption expenditure for the wealthiest 10%, is 12.5 times that of the poorest 10%. Additionally, rural Jamaican residents are in general considerably poorer than their urban counterparts (Planning Institute of Jamaica and the Statistical Institute of Jamaica 2005, p.2.8).
This suggests that a noticeable part of the nation would be unable to send their children to school. Furthermore, this may be interpreted as a repeat of colonial education in new form, where only those who can afford to pay would be able to attend school. Therefore, complete divestiture in this sense may not be the most advantageous option when one takes into consideration the economic climate of the country. Perhaps, a privatization model where the government pays private contractors to deliver the curriculum, as is the case in the UK, would be a more favourable option when one considers this economic backdrop.
e) Savings and a Redirection of Taxpayers’ Money
On the other hand, completely divesting primary education may be of advantage and a viable option. The budget for primary education is $7.2 billion, representing an increase of 11.1% (Ministry of Education 2001-2002, p.132). The government being discharged of its responsibility to fund public education – especially that of students who have little or no interest in education because it is characterized by freeness, could redirect this $7.2 billion into other needed Jamaican industries, for example, tourism and agriculture. Perhaps, this could improve the financial situation of parents in industries like these ,as well as make them more self sufficient and by extension, more capable of financing their charges’ primary and other education.
Based on teaching experience, it is a truth known within the Jamaican primary and secondary education system that there are students who explicitly reveal their intentions to not make the necessary preparations for the successful sitting of the GSAT exams done at the primary level and Caribbean Examination Council (CXC) courses paid for by the government at the secondary level. The rationale given by students for this action is that the money being spent is government’s, and not theirs. This is furthered by the notion in Jamaica that “anything free is not good” (anytin free nuh good). This is corroborated and highlighted by one Jamaican’s response to the new and current system of education, which is characterized by free tuition. She notes:
I hate to say I told you so, because it’s the schools that are being short changed financially and as you say this will filter down to the quality education given. In the end no better result. So why the change? For votes???... Now under this BETTER system the state i.e. me and you, will have to pay fees for persons who can afford to finance their children. People who earn more than we do as well. In so doing the schools suffers, because the parents who would have paid in full and early don’t have to anymore, hence the school’s budget becomes grossly under funded. The quality education of every child will be seriously compromised. Even the ones who are from the wealthier end of the society. We will soon then, begin to see a few more Hillel’s popping up as the traditional high schools lose their status. Back to the segregation of the sixties! Mark my word!
(Jamaican Lifestyle 2007, p.2)
An analysis of this vocalization reveals the speaker’s views regarding the current system of education, which one can argue may be reflective of the views of others, for example, the author of this paper. The use of upper case in writing the adjective “better” to describe the present education system, suggests mockery, sarcasm and disgust. Clearly, the piece indicates a direct, strong and negative relationship between the variables free education and quality education. The repercussions being: schools being short-changed, quality education being compromised and an increase in the burden of taxpayers.
In other words, Jamaicans should pay for education, especially those who can afford it, in order to facilitate schools not being short changed, quality education and a decrease in the burden of taxpayers. These then would be the possible advantages of this hypothetical model being proposed at the primary level – complete divestiture, which has as its core feature - paid education. In this regard then, complete divestiture of primary education would be of advantage. In fact, the evidence presented all throughout this paper indicates a positive, strong and direct association between paid education (preparatory schools) and quality education (discipline and good passes).
However, it is important to note that there is the possibility that if the government has to subsidize education at the primary level to ensure access by those students who are unable to pay, private education may prove to be an expensive venture as public education at the primary level. Air Jamaica provides an example of this.
Post the privatization of the airline, the airline received $10 billion in loans and guarantees and owes the government US$120 million” (Edwards 2003, p.A4). Also, “It costs the country’s taxpayers nearly $1billion to keep the airline flying” under privatization (Air Jamaica’s Fundamental Problems 2006, p.A6). Although the case of Air Jamaica is not an educational example, it provides a useful reference for caution, especially as it is the success of industries like these, that one also lesson draws to support the move to further the general privatization drive.
f) Cash from Sales
Additionally, not only would this hypothetical model of complete divestiture be of advantage in the form of savings and a redirection of taxpayer’s money but also cash could be made from the sales. The sale of public schools could result in cash for the Jamaican government, especially given the number of public schools in the island. Cash sales was evident in the privatization of National Commercial Bank (NCB) which raised US$16.5 million and on the first day of trading on the stock exchange and Carib Cement Company (CCC) which raised US$40 million and sold 100% of equity on the stock exchange (Sampson 2004, p.5).
Although the government would be able to make cash from the sale of so many public schools, this may lead to the unemployment of many teachers. In fact, the privatization of Air Jamaica resulted in massive redundancies for many of the workers. Private schools in Jamaica are usually associated with quality trained teachers. The downside of complete divestiture may be seen in some teachers, particularly those who do not meet the standards of preparatory schools, becoming redundant if proper plans are not instituted before and upon the complete divestiture of primary schools.
Accordingly, this may have political and economic implications, for example, massive teacher protests, an increase in the unemployment rate, which would be an unattractive indicator of the country’s level of development. Therefore, the government would need to take this into consideration and draft a plan for the employment or re-training of primary school teachers prior to complete divestiture.
g) Efficiency
Efficiency would also be an advantage of this hypothetical model. It is important to note that ideology contributed significantly to the rapid adoption of privatization. According to Sampson (2004, p.19) a Jamaican writer on privatization, the Principal and Agency theorists pointed to the weaknesses of shareholder monitoring associated with state ownership and the fact that public enterprises are not exposed to bankruptcy or mergers or to takeover when poor performances lead to weakening of their share value. He adds that public managers are not exposed to the discipline of product and financial market. For these reasons, public operated institutions are usually inefficient.
Additionally, Principal Agent theorists argue that public operated institutions do not face the competitive markets for management and hard budgets. Shareholder monitoring by the principal is very weak and public enterprise has no clearly identified shareholders (Sampson 2004, p.19).
Conversely, privatization principles advocate strong management; competition; and are exposed to mergers and takeovers. Similarly, Property Rights theorists argue that common and cooperative ownership does not provide the strong incentives which private property rights provide for maximization of efficiency and wealth. This reduces the incentive to minimize costs and maximise returns (Sampson 2006, p.11).
An adoption of these theoretical frameworks grounding complete divestiture could be seen as being of value because of its efficiency gains. Additionally, Alchian (1965 as cited in Davies 1971, pp. 149-165) outlines some major reasons private firms normally perform more efficiently than public firms. He states that:
With private ownership the rewards and costs of an activity are more directly concentrated on each individual responsible for them. The more of his own wealth an individual engages in a given economic activity, ceteris paribus, the larger his stake and the more care that person will exercise in making decisions that will affect the size of his wealth.
(Alchian 1965 as cited in Davies 1971, pp. 149-165)
In the private sector, ownership rights are transferable and the shares representing this ownership do experience changes in value. Falling prices of ownership rights will not only reveal inferior management, but also provide an opportunity for some individuals to increase their wealth by “buying in” at lower prices and eliminating the less able managers (Alchian 1965 as cited in Davies 1971, pp. 149-165). Given this, complete divestiture in primary education could therefore be of advantage. In fact, the evidence corroborates this.
For example, in 1961, of the 20,000 students who were sitting the CEE, only 978 or 46 per cent of 2,133 free places to secondary schools were won by students attending primary schools, while 1,155 or 54 per cent from preparatory schools received awards (Seaga 2007, p.G2). This indicates that 29 per cent of the students from private schools were successful while only 7 per cent of those originating from public schools were successful.
In more recent findings, the same trend was confirmed. For example, the performance of Hydel Group of Schools has been absolutely outstanding. Of the 244 students who have sat the GSAT since its inception, all Hydel students have been awarded the “HIGH” performance category for each subject by the Ministry of Education, exceeding by far both the regional and national levels of performance of government-run schools (Hydel Group 2007, p.1). In addition, in the Ministry of Education’s Grade One Inventory Examination, Grade Three Diagnostic and the Grade Four Literacy Tests, Hydel continues to excel year after year (Hydel Group 2007, p.1). Again, these findings indicate a long standing consistency in the outstanding performance of preparatory schools and in the less outstanding performance of primary schools.
However, one could argue that it is not just the schools that lead to success. There are other variables that may account for these high levels of success, for example: Pierre Bourdieu’s cultural capital – the embodied state, the objectified state and the institutionalised state (Bourdieu 1977 pp. 487-511). Bourdieu argued that, above and beyond economic factors, cultural habits and…dispositions inherited from the family are fundamentally important to school success (Bourdieu & Passeron 1979 p.14). In doing so, he broke sharply with traditional sociological conceptions of culture, which tended to view it primarily as a source of shared norms and values, or as a vehicle of collective expression. Instead, Bourdieu maintained that culture shares many of the properties that are characteristic of economic capital (Reay 2004, pp.73-74).
Therefore, the extent to which it is pragmatic to use the evidence of private schools performing better than public schools at the primary level to champion the cause for the complete divestiture of primary education in Jamaica raises concerns. Additionally, one should bear in mind that student enrolment would sharply increase, and educational provision would now need to be made for the handicapped and those with a low aptitude for learning.
Invariably, this would mean employing more trained teachers, all of which could impinge on the positive performance that private schools now experience because of the ability to exclude those they do not see fit to perform in their schools, whether in the capacity as student or as teacher. Therefore, completely extending privatization into primary education in the form of complete divestiture, does not automatically equate to the provision of these similar quality people and quality physical resources to meet a larger student count and a heterogeneous ability grouping.
Therefore, although efficiency could be had from the complete divestiture of primary education in Jamaica, the reverse could also be true. Private schools could lead to inefficiencies and “hastily created ‘fly by night’ private schools unable to provide children with a quality education in an effort to maximise profits and spend less (America Way Foundation 2003, p.1). This then could be interpreted as public schools in new form.
This therefore re-highlights the need for Quality Assurance education bodies and Regulatory bodies such as an OPER as earlier suggested. This also reveals the changing role of government. The government being driven out of the production of primary level education would no longer be producing but instead be regulating and ensuring quality in this hypothetical model.
h) Better Educational Results
Another advantage of completely divesting primary schools in Jamaica could be the facilitation of better educational results. Private schools at the primary level do better than public schools at the primary level. This is indicated in the tables below:
Table 2: Grade Six Achievement Test, Mean Scores by Subject and School Type, 1998-99
Mathematics
Science Social Studies Language Arts
Primary
41 43 48 48
Preparatory
70 68 75 61
Source: Ministry of Education 1998-99, p. 108
The table indicates that Preparatory Schools had a total mean score of 274, while Primary Schools had only a total of 180.
Table 3: Common Entrance Examinations: Entrants and Selected 1996/97-1997/98
Type of School Year No. of Entrants Number Selected
Primary & All Age 1996/97 47 898 13 287
Private Preparatory 4 441 2 921
Primary & All Age 1997/98 48 411 14 000
Private Preparatory 4 374 3 018
Source: Planning Institute of Jamaica 1998, p.19.5
The table indicates that in 1996/97, 65.8 per cent of preparatory school students were successful in the CEE exams and were selected for entry into a secondary school, while only 27.7 per cent of primary & all age school students were successful in the CEE exams and were selected for entry into a secondary school.
This trend continued in the following academic year. The table indicates that in 1997/98, 69 per cent of preparatory school students were successful in the CEE exams and were selected for entry into a secondary school, while only 29 per cent of primary & all age school students were successful in the CEE exams and were selected for entry into a secondary school.
Table 4: Grade One Reading Inventory: Student Performance in Cognitive Skill Areas, 2002
School Type No. of Pupil Sitting Percentage Mastering All 4 or Less Cognitive Skill Areas
4 3 2 1 0
Primary
15 972 58.9 - - - 23.3
Preparatory 2968 133 - - - 3.4
Source: Ministry of Education 2001-2002, p.109
The table reveals that 133 per cent of preparatory school students mastered all four areas of the cognitive skills test while only 58.9 per cent of primary school students mastered all four areas. Also, only 3.4 per cent of preparatory school students did not master the cognitive skills while a greater number, that is, 23.3 per cent of primary school students did not master the cognitive skills.
Additionally, a UNESCO report corroborates the findings in the table above. The report revealed that in Jamaica, “approximately half of the nation’s children left primary school illiterate; high numbers that continued on to the secondary system left it without achieving substantive literacy or numeracy skills”(Blank and McArdle 2003, p.6). The report attributed this outcome to the “lack of quality of what is learned in the primary schools”.
Blank also corroborates these findings. According to Blank (2002, p.6) where girls perform better than boys in Jamaican schools “approximately 5 percent of the age cohort is enrolled in private preparatory schools where the quality of education is better and where, independent of social status, students do better on cognitive and academic tests than children who attended public primary schools”.
The evidence therefore points to the inefficiencies of public schools and the efficiencies of private schools at the primary level in Jamaica and suggest that the complete divestiture of the primary Jamaican education system could yield an enhancement in the overall educational results. However, one factor that may have accounted for this could be that the playing field is not leveled for both parties as private schools student population is less, while public schools population is by far greater. This is evident in the Economic and Social Survey report presented by the Planning Institute of Jamaica (2006, p.22.7):
Table 5: Student Enrolment by Type of School 2001-2006
Year Primary Preparatory
2001/02 191 497 18 844
2002/03 189 571 18 587
2003/04 187 840 26 515
2004/05 188 057 26 125
2005/06 186 950 26 317
The table indicates that for the period 2001-2006, the total enrolment for primary schools was 943 915, while for preparatory schools the total enrolment for the said period was only 116 388. This represents an 88 per cent difference.
To add to this, “public schools suffer from a shortage of library books, furniture and inadequately maintained school buildings” (Blank and McArdle 2003, p.6). These are examples of cultural capital, which further reiterate the earlier assertion that although private schools can be seen as better, one needs to take into consideration other variables that may impact upon the situation and account for the differences. Moreover, the longevity of this positive trend amidst these circumstances and amidst a profit maximization goal brews questions. There is a degree of uncertainty where this is of concern as the success of private schools have only been seen on a small scale, that is, with a controlled number of students.
Furthermore, based on observations, many private schools at the primary level would be unlikely to accommodate significant numbers of additional students, especially students who are unable to pay as this would mean a greater demand for quality teachers and invariably an increase in costs. Private institutions by nature being profit oriented would view this as a profitable exercise and perhaps would not desire to facilitate this, as this would mean greater costs and less profit for shareholders.
This raises concerns as to what measures would these private bodies take to address the issues raised. Would private schools “water down” the education being delivered, or would the government be called in to give assistance via the forms of subsidies and loans? Debatably, if the latter is done, there might be a conflict of interest as well as accountability issues. This would therefore raise the question of who these private schools in such an arrangement would be truly accountable to. With these uncertainties, the extent of the degree of advantage of the complete divestiture of the Jamaican primary education system raises some uncertainties.
Additionally, if the entire primary education system is completely divested preparatory schools would be forced to accept students with little or no aptitude for learning. Arguably, this would have implications for the educational results. Perhaps the high educational results would decline, as the system would not only be reflective of learners with a high aptitude for learning who are able to pay for extra lessons and the added home print and electronic learning resources but also be reflective of learners with a low aptitude for learning and who are unable to afford extra lessons and electronic learning resources. These therefore highlight the need for a careful examination of all the features of complete divestiture as presented in this hypothetical model prior to its permeation of the entire Jamaican primary education system.
Conclusion
Although this hypothetical model is imperfect because of its inherent disadvantages as outlined in the foregoing, it nevertheless presents a useful framework that could be adopted for primary level education in Jamaica. Moreover, the evidence nevertheless points to the inefficiencies of public schools and the efficiencies of private schools at the primary level in Jamaica and suggests that the complete divestiture of the primary Jamaican education system could yield an enhancement in the educational results. It also suggests that if privatization in the form of complete divestiture is the answer, there still remains a role, although changing, for government - the government as regulator.
The selection of a model is nevertheless dependent on one’s values and ideologies as is evident in this paper. One should however bear in mind that changing the system via the service deliverer, or the structure, via the content and the organization, may not present a definite panacea to the problem of quality education, as there are other variables, for example, cultural capital that impact upon the phenomenon.
One thing however remains definite within the system of primary education in Jamaica and that is - reform is of dire urgency. All the variables that affect quality education must be thoroughly researched before a blueprint for a reformed primary level of education can be effectively instituted.
References
Air Jamaica (2007) Air Jamaica (ONLINE -
Air Jamaica’s Fundamental Problems (2006) ‘Air Jamaica’s fundamental problems’ The Daily Gleaner 13th November p.A6
Alchian A A (1965) ‘Some economics of property rights in the 15th general meeting of the Mount Pelerin Society Stresa Italy’ in David G. Davies (eds) (1971) ‘The Efficiency of Public Versus Private Firms the Case of Australia’s Two Airlines’ Journal of Law and Economics 14 pp. 149-165.
American Way Foundation (2003) Voucher Veneer: The Deeper Agenda to Privatize Public Education (ONLINE –
Blank L (2002) Jamaican Children and Their Families: A Situation Assessment and Analysis 1995-2000 Jamaica: Planning Institute of Jamaica/UNICEF
Blank L and McArdle T (2003) Building a Lifelong Learning Strategy in Jamaica Jamaica: HEART/NTA
Bourdieu P (1977) ‘Cultural reproduction and social reproduction’ in J Karabel and A H Halsey (eds) Power and Ideology in Education New York: Oxford University Press pp. 487-511
Bourdieu P and Passeron JC (1979) The Inheritors: French Students and their Relations to Culture Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Clarke L H and Starr I S (1981) Secondary and Middle School Teaching Methods 4th edn New York: Macmillan.
Collister K (2005) ‘Air J what went wrong?’ The Daily Gleaner (Financial Gleaner) 15th July p.34
Douglas L (2005) ‘Private secondary schools on the rise. JTA fears resurgence of elitism in education’ Sunday Observer 25th December Section 1 p.7
Douglas L (2006) ‘Why parents opt for small schools’ Sunday Observer 6th August Section 4 p.2
Durkheim E (1961) Moral Education Glencoe: Free Press.
Edwards A (2003) ‘Air Jamaica slashes fares, baggage fees’ The Daily Gleaner, 16th April p.A4
Green A (2004) ‘Gov’t takes back Air J’ The Daily Gleaner 24th December pp.A1 & A3
Haralambos M and Holborn M (2000) Sociology Themes and Perspectives 5th edn London: Harper Collins Publishers.
Haynes A (2007) Michael Manley's Foresight on the Role of the IMF in Jamaica (ONLINE -
Hydel Group (2007) Hydel Group of Schools (ONLINE -
Jamaican Lifestyle (2007) The Tuition Refund from the Government of Jamaica. (ONLINE -
Jones (2005) in L Douglas (2005) ‘Private secondary schools on the rise. JTA fears resurgence of elitism in education’ Sunday Observer 25th December Section 1 p.7
Kelly A V (2004) The Curriculum Theory and Practice 5th edn London: Sage Publications.
Lauder H, Brown P, Dillabough J and AH Halsey (2006) Education, Globalization and Social Change New York: Oxford University Press.
Ministry of Education (1998-1999) Jamaica Education Statistics 1998-1999 Jamaica: Ministry of Education
Ministry of Education (2001-2002) Jamaica Education Statistics 2001-2002 Jamaica: Ministry of Education
Mostert C (2002) Reflections on South Africa’s Restructuring of State Owned Enterprises Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (ONLINE -
Planning Institute of Jamaica (1998) Economic and Social Survey Jamaica 1998 Jamaica: Planning Institute of Jamaica.
Planning Institute of Jamaica (2006) Economic and Social Survey Jamaica 2006 Jamaica: Planning Institute of Jamaica.
Planning Institute of Jamaica and Statistical Institute of Jamaica (2004) Jamaica Survey of Living Conditions 2004 Jamaica: Planning Institute of Jamaica and Statistical Institute of Jamaica
Planning Institute of Jamaica and Statistical Institute of Jamaica (2005) Jamaica Survey of Living Conditions 2005 Jamaica: Planning Institute of Jamaica and Statistical Institute of Jamaica
Reay D (2004) ‘Education and cultural capital. The implications of changing trends in education policy’ Cultural Trends 13 (2.50) pp. 73-86
Redwood J (1990) Privatization: A consultant’s perspective. In D Gayle and J Goodrich (ed) (1990) Privatization and Deregulation in Global Perspective New York: Quorum Books p.55.
Reid R (2005) in L Douglas (2005) ‘Private secondary schools on the rise. JTA fears resurgence of elitism in education’ Sunday Observer 25th December Section 1 p.7
Robinson A (1983) Principles and Practice of Teaching London: Allen and Unwin.
Sampson C (2004) Privatisation Experiences in a Developing Commonwealth Country: The Case of Jamaica. Book edn. Jamaica.
Sampson C (2006) Class Notes on Privatization. Jamaica: n.p.
Seaga E (2007) ‘The rise and fall of free education’ The Sunday Gleaner, 29th July p.G2
Taylor (1973) in Hyman-Anglin R (1992) An Introduction to Curriculum Development Jamaica: Bethlehem Teachers’ College p.2.
Woodburn A (2007) ‘The long term benefits of free education’ The Sunday Gleaner, 29th July p.G8
No comments:
Post a Comment