Tuition fees soar, millions of Indian students leave private schools

COVID-19 has reversed many of life’s trends. Education is no exception. In India, before the pandemic, private schools, with different curriculum, or taught in English, were always attractive to parents. The percentage of families who enroll their children in private schools is 35%. In which, nearly half of households are willing to spend nearly one-fifth of their income for their children’s education. But now, the COVID-19 pandemic, along with inflation, has caused tuition fees at private schools to soar. Millions of Indian parents are transferring their children from private schools to public schools due to their inability to pay.

Waqar Khan’s income has dropped by about a fifth due to the COVID-19 epidemic, while his son’s private school has increased tuition by 10%. He had to send his son to transfer schools. “We paid a portion of the school fees when the online classes went live, but even if we only had about a month or two left to pay, my child wouldn’t be able to attend the classes. study or take an exam”.

This is a reversal of a trend that has prevailed in India over the past two decades, as more and more families are choosing private education with the belief that their children will have an advantage in the job market. And because private schools in India are also diverse, from a few dozen dollars to a few hundred dollars per month. Therefore, middle-income families can also send their children to school.

However, now that a large number of private schools have increased tuition and other fees by more than 15% this year, and transportation companies that take students to school have also increased their prices by more than 15%. Many families cannot afford this extra cost.

Ms. Sudha Acharya – Principal of ITL Private School, India: “We sympathize with the parents, but without increasing tuition fees to maintain quality, it is also very difficult. The salary to pay teachers comes from school. fees, every year schools also have to pay a variety of costs, and these costs are also increasing.”

According to the Association of Schools, many private schools have had to cut salaries for teachers, thousands of private schools have even had to close because most parents cannot pay tuition fees.

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