A1 Oral presentation

[2C204] Role and Prospects of Private Schools in the Republic of the Union of Myanmar

*Hiromitsu MUTA¹ (1. International Development Center of Japan)

Keywords:Private Schools, Matriculation Examination, Pass Rate

According to the Private School Registration Law enacted in 2011 after Myanmar's transition to democracy from more than 30 years of military rule, the establishment of private schools at the basic education level began in FY2012, and the number of such schools and students has increased rapidly. However, the increase in the number of students was mainly seen at the high school level, especially in the final grade, Grade 11, where the ratio of private schools increased to a national average of 17% by 2020. The regional distribution of these students was highly variable by state/region, with 37% in Mandalay Region, 36% in Nay Pyi Taw Capital Territory, and 3% in Ayeyarwady Region and Kayin State, concentrated in specific regions. The role of the program is in reality dedicated to preparing students for the University Entrance Qualification Examination (Matriculation Examination), which contributed to improving the matriculation exam pass rate in that region. An analysis controlling for a variety of variables related to the matriculation exam showed that a 1 percentage point increase in the private schooling ratio increased the pass rate by 0.42 percentage points when controlling for a variety of related variables. Due to the political and economic turmoil resulting from the 2021 coup d'état, the number of private school students increased dramatically at the primary school level and decreased dramatically at the high school level. The law was revised into the Private Education Law in 2023, which strengthened government control and is expected to authorize private universities in 2024. Since private universities also require students to pass matriculation exams for admission, the advantage of private schools over entrance examinations will not be replaced unless the university admission system is changed, but since it costs money to send students to private schools, the future economic situation will have a significant impact on their prospects.