India surpasses China with five times more schools: Niti Aayog Report

India boasts five times the number of schools compared to China, according to the latest Niti Aayog report on large-scale transformations in school education. Here are the key insights.

Recent reports reveal that dozens of international and private schools in China are closing or merging due to tighter regulations, economic slowdown, and declining foreign student numbers.

In 2020, around 180,000 private education institutions in China, constituting over a third of all educational institutions, enrolled 55.6 million students.

However, international schools faced a decline in student numbers amid expatriates leaving post-pandemic and rising geopolitical tensions.

The Niti Aayog report highlights that over



50% of primary schools in many Indian states have enrollments of less than 60 students.

The challenges of sub-scale schools include multi-grade teaching, lack of community involvement, poor infrastructure, and teachers handling administrative responsibilities without headmasters or principals.

The report proposes school mergers as a viable solution to address low enrollments, citing successful execution in SATH-E states. Despite perceived risks, third-party studies demonstrate positive outcomes and improved learning when mergers are rigorously executed.

The report suggests states can develop large, integrated K-12 schools, following recommendations in the National Education Policy (NEP) for establishing extensive school complexes.