48 CHAPTER 3


The mobility of learners and the dynamic nature of human capital forma- tion raise other concerns. Since learners, especially at the secondary level under the post-apartheid regime, can potentially choose their schools more freely, endogenous school choice (mobility across communities) can be an important factor in determining educational outcomes at the school level.6 Similarly, since prior investments in human capital affect educational out- comes at later stages, schooling inputs and outcomes at the primary school level are expected to influence those at the secondary level.7 While mobil- ity of learners can potentially weaken the spatial correlation between local factors and school outcomes, the dynamic production of human capital can strengthen the correlation.


To understand the linkage between school quality and local resources, we need to know the roles of school governing bodies (SGBs). It is the SGB—a group consisting of the principal, teachers, community leaders, parents, and in some secondary schools, learners themselves—that sets school fees. Accordingly, the school fees charged represent the community’s ability to pay for education.8 SGBs are playing an even greater role now; under recently implemented funding reforms, provincial governments allocate school subsi- dies according to local poverty measures. To assess the quality of education, information on school fees charged by local public schools is used. In South Africa, school fees determine not only school quality but also the likelihood that residents will be able to afford investments in schooling. Until recently, government educational subsidies in South Africa have been limited, so financing of schools relies heavily on the collection of school fees—in effect a user charge—from parents. As mentioned in paragraph 46 of the 1998 Norms and Standards for School Funding,


Ironically, given the emphasis on redress and equity, the funding pro- visions of the Act appear to have worked thus far to the advantage of public schools patronized by middle-class and wealthy parents. The


under the post-apartheid regime. We argue that the ability to hire more qualified teachers depends on the community’s income level (school fees), which is spatially clustered in today’s


South Africa. 6 Van der Berg (2007) reports that learners do not systematically move to better-quality schools probably because of lack of information on school performance, and that the amount of move- ment to private schools is minor. However, this observation was based on Western Cape prov-


ince, so it is difficult to generalize. 7 In a slightly different context, but one highly relevant to this issue, Yamauchi (2008) showed significant effects of preschool nutrition intake (forming early-childhood human capital) on


schooling outcomes. 8 See the 1998 Norms and Standards for School Funding (Republic of South Africa 1998), which was announced in response to the South African School Act (Republic of South Africa 1996b).


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