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

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  • Manisha Shah
  • Bryce Millett Steinberg

Abstract

The Right to Education Act in 2009 guaranteed access to free primary education for all children in India ages 6-14. This paper investigates whether national trends in educational data changed 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 be improving 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 the official provisions of the law.

Suggested Citation

  • Manisha Shah & Bryce Millett Steinberg, 2019. "The Right to Education Act: Trends in Enrollment, Test Scores, and School Quality," NBER Working Papers 25608, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    • Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:25608
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    1. Abhijit V. Banerjee & Shawn Cole & Esther Duflo & Leigh Linden, 2007. "Remedying Education: Evidence from Two Randomized Experiments in India," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 122(3), pages 1235-1264.
    2. Karthik Muralidharan & Abhijeet Singh & Alejandro J. Ganimian, 2019. "Disrupting Education? Experimental Evidence on Technology-Aided Instruction in India," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 109(4), pages 1426-1460, April.
    3. Esther Duflo & Pascaline Dupas & Michael Kremer, 2011. "Peer Effects, Teacher Incentives, and the Impact of Tracking: Evidence from a Randomized Evaluation in Kenya," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 101(5), pages 1739-1774, August.
    4. Manisha Shah & Bryce Millett Steinberg, 2021. "Workfare and Human Capital Investment: Evidence from India," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 56(2), pages 380-405.
    5. Muralidharan, Karthik & Das, Jishnu & Holla, Alaka & Mohpal, Aakash, 2017. "The fiscal cost of weak governance: Evidence from teacher absence in India," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 145(C), pages 116-135.
    6. Hsieh, Chang-Tai & Urquiola, Miguel, 2006. "The effects of generalized school choice on achievement and stratification: Evidence from Chile's voucher program," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 90(8-9), pages 1477-1503, September.
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    Cited by:

    1. 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.
    2. 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.
    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. 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).
    5. 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).
    6. 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).
    7. 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.
    8. 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).
    9. 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.
    10. 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.
    11. 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.
    12. 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).
    13. Tafesse, Wiktoria, 2022. "The effect of Universal Salt Iodization on cognitive test scores in rural India," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 152(C).
    14. 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.
    15. 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).

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • I2 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education
    • I21 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Analysis of Education
    • I25 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Education and Economic Development
    • O1 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development
    • O38 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Government Policy
    • O53 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economywide Country Studies - - - Asia including Middle East

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