Hidden costs undermine free basic education policy – Study

Hidden costs borne by parents continue to undermine Ghana’s Free Basic Education policy, with families paying for items and services that place additional financial burdens on households, a study has revealed.

The study highlighted a gap between the policy objective of free basic education and the actual experiences of parents, many of whom continue to incur out-of-pocket expenses to support their children’s education.

The study titled, “The Hidden Costs of Public Education in Ghana” was conducted by the Africa Education Watch (Eduwatch), an education policy research and advocacy organization, with support from Oxfam.

The study surveyed 200 parents and guardians of children in kindergarten, primary, and junior high schools across 65 public basic schools in 20 districts to examine out-of-pocket expenditure on 10 cost items and their implications for access and participation.

The cost items included examination fees, school uniforms, extra classes, assignments, and other school-related expenses. Parents reported incurring costs as high as GHC 800 for admission fees, GHC 2,950 for textbooks, and GHC 1,000 for desks.

The figures highlighted the extent to which households continue to finance essential educational inputs and services that should either be publicly provided or regulated to prevent financial barriers to participation.

Mr Kofi Asare, the Executive Director of Eduwatch, presenting the study, said the findings highlighted a gap between the policy objective of free basic education and the actual experiences of parents, many of whom continue to incur out-of-pocket expenses to support their children’s education.

He said the findings indicated that parents paid for several items and services, including examination-related expenses, despite the government’s responsibility to provide basic education.

It also identified extra classes, school uniforms, and other educational materials as significant sources of expenditure for households.

According to the presentation, some of the costs were linked to school-based practices that parents felt compelled to meet to ensure their children could participate fully in school activities and examinations.

The study further raised concerns about the consequences of non-payment, indicating that some parents feared their children could face difficulties participating in examinations or accessing certain school activities if the required payments were not made.

Such practices raised questions about the extent to which basic education could be considered free when parents continued to shoulder costs associated with their children’s schooling.

The study said the government needed to clearly identify the costs associated with basic education and ensure that they were fully financed to prevent parents from bearing expenses that could undermine access to education.

The study emphasized that addressing the hidden costs of education was important to ensuring equitable access and preventing children from disadvantaged households from being placed at a disadvantage.

Mr Asare called for a comprehensive and fully costed and financed free compulsory universal basic education policy for all essential basic education inputs.

Participants called for concerted efforts to address these inequalities to improve teaching and learning outcomes.

GNA

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