India's affordable private schools face a reckoning

Nearly 79 million Indian students attend affordable private schools, which plug a crucial gap between the demand for quality education and access. With Covid upending education as a recession-proof business, these schools will have to find ways to stay relevant or die out

With parents unable or unwilling to pay fees, India’s nearly-270,000 APSs face an existential threat

They are trying to retain students through WhatsApp classes and phone calls. Without any fees coming in, this is getting tougher

Many students will turn to government schools, which have rolled out extensive online classes

Without government bailouts, APSs will have to ride out this storm by re-building their value online

The impact of Covid-19 on education has been staggering. In April, roughly nine out of ten students worldwide were out of school. The most common response to the pandemic, it seems, was an abrupt nationwide shutdown of schools.

Denmark, the first country to do so, is now trying to ease back into a normal routine through split classes and outdoor teaching. It has opened up only primary sections but even this drew the ire of scared parents. This is possible because Denmark’s infection count has fallen below 3.5 per 100,000 citizens.

Schools in India shut down around the same time as Denmark—17 March.

AUTHOR

Olina Banerji

Based in Delhi, Olina writes about mega-trends in urban mobility, education, skilling and the environment, with a focus on how institutions and innovations can help cities grow sustainably. She is a graduate of the London School of Economics, and has worked previously with India Today and global non-profit Ashoka.

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