Education and Basic Human Needs. World Bank Staff Working Paper No. 450.

Overview & Synopsis

This paper conceptualizes basic education and examines its ability to deliver benefits, particularly to the poor in developing nations. Education for basic human needs is interpreted to include skills to communicate, skills to improve the quality of life, and skills for production. The premise is that the main obstacle to the expansion of basic education is the desire of the socio-economic elite to keep their privileges, which are generally reinforced by existing administrative and social structures. The document is presented in three major sections. Section I discusses the limits of organized education, possible responses of education to basic needs, and ways of conceptualizing educational policy so that it can meet the skill needs of people in nations experiencing various stages of economic development. Specific steps suggested for consideration by educational policy planners include building schools, training more teachers, initiating mass campaigns to encourage people to seek schooling, developing extension activities, supporting cultural activities, and developing paraprofessional cadres of instructors. Section II discusses how plans to expand educational facilities and services can be affordable, cost-effective, and acceptable to governments and other administrative bodies which allocate funds. One main point emphasized throughout this section is that basic education cannot take firm roots until all fundamental human services are extended to the population. Case studies are presented to show that, in some areas, investing in education in the absence of other services can be counterproductive. The final section suggests steps toward implementing a policy for universalizing basic education including reducing costs of delivering education and seeking funds from international agencies. (DB)