School Participation in Rural India

This paper presents an analysis of the determinants of school participation in rural north India, based on a recent household survey which includes detailed information on school characteristics. School participation, especially among girls, responds to a wide range of variables, including parental education and motivation, social background, dependency ratios, work opportunities, village development, teacher postings, mid‐day meals and infrastructural quality. Mid‐day meals are particularly effective: the provision of a mid‐day meal in the local school roughly halves the proportion of girls excluded from the schooling system. School quality matters, though it is not related in a simple way to specific inputs.