How effective are community empowerment programmes in World Bank-supported educational programmes? Can community-led school management help to improve the quality of teaching and learning for the poor and disadvantaged? This article reviews 12 country case studies for evidence of their effectiveness. It suggests that school development features that contribute to learning outcomes – such as curriculum development, teacher assessment and student assessment – need to remain the responsibility of education professionals. A realistic model of community empowerment in support of basic education would contain an appropriate mix of community and professional involvement.
There is no standard definition of community empowerment in the context of public education. Educational systems can have varying extents of community involvement in decision-making. These range from local school management committees that control almost all aspects of a school to community groups that are involved in just a few decisions.
In theory, community empowerment leads to increased ownership and commitment among parents, which can contribute to improved access and better educational outcomes. Community involvement in the management of schools was initially supported by the World Bank in the mid-1990s and subsequently became a growing phenomenon in the developing world.
Evidence from field studies (in Niger, Mali, Ghana, Uganda, Yemen, Vietnam, India, Honduras, Romania, Peru and Uruguay) reveals the strengths and weaknesses of the approach:
- School committees are effective when put in charge of school construction, maintenance or renovation when compared to government-run construction projects.
- Community empowerment can positively influence teacher attendance, which has been shown to influence student learning.
- However, the community empowerment programmes identified have not been systematically evaluated with respect to educational outcomes.
- Where school management committees exist, they often meet irregularly, do not include low-income parents, or are captured by elites or the school head.
- Community contributions do not necessarily positively influence school quality and learning outcomes for the poor. This could be because parents lack information on what constitutes good schooling and may not have enough experience or control over funds to exercise their powers effectively.
Expert mentors or facilitators, whilst expensive, would help communities to make appropriate evidence-based planning decisions. Donors and governments also need to consider the following:
- Impact evaluations of existing programmes are needed. Community empowerment programmes have been adopted in the past by countries and supported by the World Bank without sufficient piloting or evaluation.
- Evidence from Central America shows that programmes may only have an impact where community groups have control over a critical mass of resources.
- Governments and donors should set quotas to ensure that there is widespread participation in community-based school management committees.
