非正規課程の教育拡大が教育の質に与える全体構造 : ポスト EFA 期のマラウイの初等教育を事例に

Since the 1990s, African countries have introduced policies for making education free, primarily for compulsory education. As a result, the quantitative expansion of education has been successful, but the quality of education remains an issue. The decline in the quality of education after its quantitative expansion may be viewed as an inevitable consequence in the transitional period. However, in order to improve the quality of education in the future, it is necessary to find a system which does not trigger a decline in quality. In order to do so, it is important to identify the overall structure of the decline in the quality of education. In this paper, we will focus on the expansion of non-formal education, which is considered to be a part of a structure that sustains the quality decline and examine its impact.
The subject of this research is primary education policy in Malawi, a country located in the center of Southeast Africa. In particular, this paper uses micro-perspective to examine how teachers and guardians accept the free education policy and utilize non-formal education. When the quality of education received at schools is not satisfactory, guardians do not continue to send their children to such low-quality schools, but seek other options, such as private schools or non-formal education. This trend in demand is prompting teachers to leave public schools. This suggests that a structure which sustains the decline in overall quality of education is being formed. In order to explore ways to improve the quality of education in Malawi, it is becoming more vital to pay attention to guardians’ and communities’ expectations and choices regarding education.