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The Right to Education Act: Trends in Enrollment, Test Scores, and School Quality

Author

Listed:
  • Manisha Shah
  • Bryce Steinberg

Abstract

The Right to Education (RTE) Act passed in 2009 guarantees access to free primary education to all children ages 6-14 in India. This paper investigates whether national trends in educational outcomes change around the time of this law using household surveys and administrative data. We document four trends: (1) school-going increases after the passage of RTE, (2) test scores decline dramatically after 2010, (3) school infrastructure appears to improve both before and after RTE, and (4) the number of students who have to repeat a grade falls precipitously after RTE is enacted, in line with official provisions of the law.

Suggested Citation

  • Manisha Shah & Bryce Steinberg, 2019. "The Right to Education Act: Trends in Enrollment, Test Scores, and School Quality," AEA Papers and Proceedings, American Economic Association, vol. 109, pages 232-238, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:aea:apandp:v:109:y:2019:p:232-38
    Note: DOI: 10.1257/pandp.20191060
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    Cited by:

    1. Joshi, Radhika, 2020. "Can social integration in schools be mandated: Evidence from the Right to Education Act in India," International Journal of Educational Development, Elsevier, vol. 77(C).
    2. Tsaneva Magda & Balakrishnan Uttara, 2021. "Local Labor Markets and Child Learning Outcomes in India," The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, De Gruyter, vol. 21(2), pages 723-750, April.
    3. Gao, Pei & Kothari, Aditi & Lei, Yu-Hsiang, 2025. "Safe spaces for children: School sanitation and sexual violence," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 172(C).
    4. Leena Bhattacharya, 2019. "Short-Term Migration and Children’s School Attendance: Evidence from Rural India," The Indian Journal of Labour Economics, Springer;The Indian Society of Labour Economics (ISLE), vol. 62(4), pages 659-691, December.
    5. Athira Vinod, 2024. "Direct and indirect effects of the Right to Education Act on the enrolment of disadvantaged groups in India," Discussion Papers 2024-01, University of Nottingham, CREDIT.
    6. Prashant Poddar & Valentina Rotondi & Ridhi Kashyap, 2025. "Access to technology and foundational math proficiency among students: empirical evidence from India," Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 12(1), pages 1-15, December.
    7. Vinitha Varghese, 2022. "Impact of the right to education on school enrolment of children with disabilities: Evidence from India," WIDER Working Paper Series wp-2022-91, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    8. Nandi, Arindam & Haberland, Nicole & Ngo, Thoai D., 2023. "The impact of primary schooling expansion on adult educational attainment, literacy, and health: Evidence from India’s Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan," International Journal of Educational Development, Elsevier, vol. 102(C).
    9. Koussihouèdé, Oswald, 2020. "Primary school size and learning achievement in Senegal: Testing the quantity–quality trade-off," International Journal of Educational Development, Elsevier, vol. 77(C).
    10. Moeeni, Safoura & Tanaka, Atsuko, 2023. "The effects of labor market opportunities on education: The case of a female hiring ceiling in Iran," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 224(C).
    11. Chirantan Chatterjee & Eric A. Hanushek & Shreekanth Mahendiran, 2020. "Can Greater Access to Education Be Inequitable? New Evidence from India’s Right to Education Act," NBER Working Papers 27377, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    12. Dr. Ratna Verma & Dr. Debendra Nath Dash & Ms. Mahima Purohit, 2024. "A Study on Access and Use of Diksha for School Teachers amid Covid-19 in Rajasthan," International Journal of Research and Scientific Innovation, International Journal of Research and Scientific Innovation (IJRSI), vol. 11(6), pages 21-37, June.
    13. Scott Dallman & Anusha Nath & Filip Premik, 2021. "The Effect of Constitutional Provisions on Education Policy and Outcomes," Staff Report 623, Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis.
    14. Posso, Alberto, 2025. "Contextualizing child labor reforms: Education policy, legal bans, and female child labor in rural South India," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 235(C).
    15. Bailwal, Neha & Paul, Sourabh Bikas, 2024. "Village dominance and learning gaps in rural India," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 219(C), pages 52-73.
    16. Naveen Kumar & Vinitha Varghese, 2022. "Elementary education in India versus China: Guidelines for NEP implementation," WIDER Working Paper Series wp-2022-64, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    17. Tafesse, Wiktoria, 2022. "The effect of Universal Salt Iodization on cognitive test scores in rural India," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 152(C).

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • H52 - Public Economics - - National Government Expenditures and Related Policies - - - Government Expenditures and Education
    • I21 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Analysis of Education
    • I25 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Education and Economic Development
    • I28 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Government Policy
    • O15 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Economic Development: Human Resources; Human Development; Income Distribution; Migration

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