The education in South-East Europe and trade-off between efficiency and equity

Abstract

The article analyses efficiency and equity trade-off in education in observed countries in South East Europe countries. Efficiency relates to how well an economy allocates scarce resources to meet the needs and wants of consumers, while equity deals with the distribution of resources and is related to fairness and social justice. The aim is to identify those circumstances under which equity and efficiency may not trade-off against each other. At least in theory, education is a means by which democracies attempt to equalize opportunities among citizens for economic success. Education and training policies could have a significant positive impact on economic and social outcomes, including sustainable development and social cohesion. It is commonly thought that opportunity equalization, in that dimension, is implemented by the provision of equal access to public resources to all citizens. However, very often this is not the case and often existing public services - like education systems - reproduce or even increase existing inequities.

Keywords

education, training, trade-off, efficiency and equity, South East Europe

References

1. Bejaković, P., Meinardus, M., (eds.) (2011). Equity vs. Efficiency – Possibilities to Lessen the Trade-Off in Social, Employment and Education Policy in South-East Europe, Sofia: Friedrich Ebert Foundation Office Bulgaria.
2. Betts, J. R., Roemer, J. E., (1999). "Equalizing Opportunity through Educational Finance Reform", Working Paper, San Francisco: John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation and the Public Policy Institute of California.
3. Calvò-Armengol, A., Jackson, M. O., (2005). Like Father, Like Son: Social Networks, Human Capital Investment, and Social Mobility, Social Science Working Paper 1242, Pasadena, California: Division of the Humanities and Social Sciences, California Institute of Technology.
4. Çela, E., (2011). Albania: Education, Employment and Social Policies - Lost in Translation, in Bejaković, P., Meinardus, M., (eds.) (2011). pp. 37-50.
5. Cenić, S., (2011). Bosnia and Herzegovina: Development vs. Progress, in Bejaković, P., Meinardus, M., (eds.) (2011). pp. 51-70.
6. Ciurea, C., (2011). Moldova: System Survival vs. Long-term Viability, in Bejaković, P., Meinardus, M., (eds.) (2011). pp. 119-136.
7. Curaj, A., Deca, L., Egron-Polak, E., Salmi, J. (eds) (2015). Higher Education Reforms in Romania Between the Bologna Process and National Challenges, London: Springer.
8. Commission of the European Communities, (2006). Communication from the Commission to the Council and to the European Parliament: Efficiency and equity in European education and training systems, Brussels: Commission of the European Communities.
9. European Commission, (2015). Education and Training Monitor 2015 Bulgaria, Brussels: The European Commission. Available on https://ec.europa.eu/education/tools/docs/2015/monitor2015-bulgaria_en.pdf.
10. Gabriela, C., (2011). Romania: The Cost of Scarce Social Policies - Economic Failure, in Bejaković, P., Meinardus, M., (eds.) (2011). pp. 147-162.
11. Hanushek, E.A., (2005). Why Quality Matters in Education, Finance and Development, June 2005, 42(2).
12. Head, J.G., (1993). "Tax Fairness Principles: A Conceptual Historical and Practical Review", pp. 3-62. in Maslove, A. M., (Ed.), Fairness in Taxation: Exploring the Principles, Toronto, Ontario: University of Toronto Press.
13. Holdgreve-Resendez, R. T. (2014). "Early Literacy and Math Education Reform in Macedonia: The Context", Paper presented at the annual meeting of the 54th Annual Conference of the Comparative and International Education Society, Palmer House Hotel, Chicago, Illinois, available from http://citation.allacademic.com/meta/p401183_index.html
14. Institute for Public Policy, (2008). Baseline Study on Basic Education in the Republic of Moldova from the perspective of child friendly schools Chisinau: UNICEF, available on http://www.unicef.org/moldova/educatia_de_baza_eng.pdf
15. Kaludjerović, J., (2011). Montenegro: From Equity towards Efficiency, Bejaković, P., Meinardus, M., (eds.) (2011). pp. 137-146.
16. McKeown-Moak, M., (2000). A View from the States: A Survey of the Collection and Use of Cost Data by States, in Higher Education Cost Measurement: Public Policy Issues, Options, and Strategies, Washington, DC: The Institute for Higher Education Policy and TIAA-CREF Institute.
17. Mehmeti, J., (2011). Kosovo: New Country, Old Problems, in Bejaković, P., Meinardus, M., (eds.) (2011). pp. 97-106.
18. Milevska Kostova, N., Kotevska, B., (2011). Macedonia: Education vs. Unemployment - a Way out of Poverty? in Bejaković, P., Meinardus, M., (eds.) (2011). pp. 107-118
19. Ministry of Education and Science, Republic of Albania, (2003). National Education Strategy 2004-2015, Tirana: Albanian Ministry of Education and Science.
20. Okun, A., (1975). Equality and Efficiency: The Big Trade-off, Washington, D.C.: The Brookings Institution.
21. Pavlović, D., Arandarenko, M., (2011). Serbia: Equity and Efficiency - Hand in Hand, in Bejaković, P., Meinardus, M., (eds.) (2011). pp. 163-176
22. Petkov, K., Vladikov, A., (2011). Bulgaria: Transition Revised - Social Fragmentation and Poverty Increase, in Bejaković, P., Meinardus, M., (eds.) (2011). pp. 71-86.
23. Roemer, E. J., (1998). Equality of Opportunity, Boston: Harvard University Press.
24. Roemer, E. J., Trannoy A., (2013). Equality of Opportunity, Cowles Foundation Discussion Paper No. 1921, New Haven, Connecticut: Cowles Foundation for Research in Economics Yale University, available on http://cowles.econ.yale.edu/
25. Taubman, P. 1989. Role of Parental Income in Educational Attainment, The American Economic Review, 79 (2): 57-61.
26. Teixeira, P.N., Johnstone, D.B., Rosa, M.J., Vossensteyn, H., (Eds.), 2008. Cost-sharing and Accessibility in Higher Education: A Fairer Deal? Dordrecht: Springer.
27. Tiongson, E. R., (2005). "Education Policy Reforms" in Coudouel, A., Paternostro, S. (ed.), 2005. A User’s Guide to Poverty and Social Impact Analysis, Volume One, Washington, DC: International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) - The World Bank, Poverty Reduction Group and Social Development Department. pp. 261-294.
28. UNICEF, (2012). Education in Montenegro Country Profile, Geneva: UNICEF, available at http://www.unicef.org/ceecis/Montenegro.pdf
29. Wenderoth, A., Moo Sang, B., (2004). Situational Analysis of Education in Kosovo, Pristina: UNICEF Kosovo.
30. Wolf, A. (2002). Does education matter? Myths about education and economic growth. London: Penguin Books.
31. World Bank, (2005). World Development Report: Equity and Development, Washington DC.: The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development and World Bank
32. Wößmann, L., Schütz, G., (2006). Efficiency and Equity in European Education and Training Systems, Analytical Report for the European Commission, Brussels: The European Commission.