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Analysis of issues shaping African development. April 2012
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Mindset change needed at Oxfam
Its not only Bank studies that are showing that teachers perform differently and are often more accoutable to parents in community based low cost private schools. These teachers are also often paid much less (sometimes less than half) than government teachers but are accountaible because their salary comes from the school fees paid by parents. When the method of paying for education is changed this can have a considerable impact on the motivation of teachers and how they perform. Oxfam's refusal to even engage in this debate is a real concern and their failure to acknowledge the importance of a thriving market in budget private schools serving low income communities suggests that an outdated ideology in favour of government provision of all public services is still driving their mission. When an institution is committed to such an ideology it is difficult to see how their mindset can be changed. Perhaps if Oxfam committed some of their resources to investigating the differences between public and private schools and how their funding impacts their performance then perhaps they can begin to play a more constructive role in this important debate.