Wealth inequalities in perceptions of school quality in Pakistan

This paper assesses the factors driving parental perceptions about school quality in rural Pakistan. Using a three-period longitudinal database on rural households in three districts, this study estimates different models to answer this question: ordered and generalised ordered logit specifications as well as linear probability models with household and school fixed effects. The results are preoccupying as we observe strong differences between privileged and disadvantaged households. Only the richest households take into account test scores when forming their perceptions. This finding suggests that access to information is unequal and could penalize the poorest children. Both rich and poor households tend to overestimate the quality of private schools which can explain the recent growth in private enrollment. Other school characteristics such as the size of the school, the medium of instruction (English teaching) or school infrastructure are also valued by parents.