Mobile Phones, Civic Engagement, and School Performance in Pakistan. CEPA Working Paper No. 16-17

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34

Foreign Countries; Developing Nations; Handheld Devices; Telecommunications; Citizen Participation; Academic Achievement; Program Evaluation; Governance; Elementary School Students; Middle School Students; School Councils; Guidance; Information Dissemination; Enrollment Trends; Teacher Attendance; Educational Facilities; Quasiexperimental Design; Regression (Statistics); Intervention

The effective governance of local public services depends critically on the civic engagement of local citizens. However, recent efforts to promote effective citizen oversight of the public-sector services in developing countries have had mixed results. This study discusses and evaluates a uniquely designed, low-cost, scalable program designed to improve the governance and performance of primary and middle schools in the Punjab province of Pakistan. The School Council Mobilization Program (SCMP) used mobile-phone calls to provide sustained and targeted guidance to local school-council members on their responsibilities and authority. We examine the effects of the SCMP on school enrollment, student and teacher attendance, and school facilities using a "difference in difference in differences" (DDD) design based on the targeted implementation of the SCMP. We find that this initiative led to meaningful increases in primary-school enrollment, particularly for young girls (i.e., a 12.4 percent increase), as well as targeted improvements in teacher attendance and school facilities, most of which were sustained in the months after the program concluded.

As Provided

22

2018

ED579667