Public Private Partnerships in United States Education
In recent decades, Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) have been increasingly seen as the answer to challenges with providing quality education. While some employment of PPPs has been noted to be beneficial in certain contexts, others cannot claim notable success. The following post will hopefully shed light on the pros of PPPs within American education and identify some of the potential cons as well.
What are PPPs?
First, it is important to understand what PPPs are. There are a number of ways that PPPs can be defined, but the general consensus is that they involve the public funding of private delivery of services (Education International 2009). Just about every description of PPPs explains that they are meant to fill some sort of gap or inadequacy in the public delivery of services ranging from healthcare, to infrastructure, to education (Ibid). Some of the challenges in American schools that could be addressed by PPPs include poverty and low graduation rates, especially in urban areas, as well as student services, such as counseling, transportation, and food service, adn professional development to increase teacher quality (Galston, 2014). PPPs are not a new idea but they have become much more common in recent decades.
In the United States, PPPs in education generally fall into three categories. First, public schools, especially smaller districts, outsource many student services that would be costly to provide independently. These include bussing, custodial services, and cafeteria services. Secondly, and more directly related to instruction and learning, public funds may be allocated to private institutions through the use of vouchers. In this instance, public school districts provide money to students so that they can attend a school of their choice, whether public or private. Voucher programs for school choice have been met with some success, especially in low income areas where the tax base for public funds is not as great (Kuang, 2017). Last, public monies can be used in support of charter schools. Charter schools are publicly funded institutions that operate independently of the rest of the school district. Success with regard to Charter schools varies and is largely dependent upon academic scrutiny and accountability.
A political agenda or a solution to all our problems?
While some see PPPs as a way to deliver services in a more efficient way that increases accountability, others are not as comfortable with the notion of private companies controlling public services. Proponents of PPPs highlight several points that point to the desirability of such business relationships. For one, PPPs are seen as a way to create competition, thus driving both quality and value up so that people get the most out of the public funds (World Bank, 2009). Another idea in favor of PPPs is that they allow greater flexibility in policy because they enjoy more autonomy (Ibid). There are some who have concerns however. Some fear that the PPPs will lead to the breakdown of the public education system as a whole. Another concern, especially when it comes to PPPs in education, is that it will lead to an unequal distribution of resources and services (Ibid). Certain stakeholders, namely teachers and other staff, also fear that PPPs will lead to less job stability in the drive to remain competitive (Ibid).
The stratification of support for PPPs follows an ideological pattern that can easily be seen as part of a political agenda. On one side there are conservative politicians whose goal is to increase market competition and limit government influence. It is likely that these policy makers would welcome the concept of PPPs. On the other hand, liberal politicians are interested in collecting and distributing public funds through government agencies. These policy makers would likely be against overuse of PPPs.
PPPs on the global front
The United States has plenty of evidence of large scale use of PPPs to deliver educational services from around the world. In developing countries, PPPs are often connected to funding from institutions that oversee the allocation of services and require recipients of the money to conform to certain policies. For example, the World Bank has worked extensively in countries like Indonesia, Senegal, and Burkina Faso to assist in the provision of services that allow greater access to education through the use of PPPs (Education International, 2009). In many other countries such as Finland, Sweden, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Ireland Public money is used to at least subsidize private schooling, and in some cases to fully fund it (engage).
- Evidence exists both in favor and against the use of PPPs in education but like so many other things in life, success depends on many factors. This means that important considerations need to be made when discussing policy regarding PPPs.
- The relationship between public and private sector but be explicitly defined. How can any of the actors succeed without clear expectations?
- Measurements of accountability must be clearly outlined. If success cannot be easily measured, how will it be known if the system is working and furthermore, how can it be fixed
- How committed to the policy are the stakeholders who are involved? In other words, are the stakeholders all on board or is the policy being promoted as part of a larger political agenda?
At the end of the day, it is important to keep the most important stakeholders, the students, in mind.
References
Engage (2015). How Does School Choice Work in Other Countries?. Friedman Foundation for
Educational Choice. http://www.edchoice.org/school_choice_faqs/how-does-school-choice-work-in-other-countries.
Education International (2009). Public private partnerships in education. Brussels: EI.
Galston, W. (2014). Is there a crisis?. Frontline.
States. Harvard Political Review. https://harvardpolitics.com/united-states/the-unlikely-couple-the-rise-of-public-private-partnerships-in-the-united-states/
World Bank (2009). The role an2012 - Chapter 12 - The National Politics of Global Policies -
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