The shift of private education from a civic public good to a profit-driven enterprise has reframed students as customers and parents as revenue sources, prioritizing financial gain over accessibility to quality education .
Education was once seen as a public good, a means to build citizens, not balance sheets. But across many parts of the country, private schooling is steadily drifting away from this ideal. What was meant to supplement public education has, in too many cases, turned into an aggressive, profit, driven enterprise where parents are treated less like stakeholders and more like revenue streams. The problem is no longer limited to high fees alone. It is the ecosystem that has grown around private schooling, one that normalises extraction. Annual charges, “development” fees, mandatory uniforms from select vendors, overpriced books, transport add,ons, and a constant stream of miscellaneous levies have become routine. Parents often have little choice but to comply, fearing that resistance may affect their child’s experience in school. What is more worrying is the emergence of so, called “trainers” and consultants who coach school managements on how to maximise revenue. These are not educators focused on pedagogy or student welfare, but strategists of monetisation. Workshops and closed, door sessions now reportedly advise schools on “fee optimisation”, “parent psychology”, and “revenue diversification”. In plain terms, the focus has shifted from improving education to extracting more money, systematically and strategically. This trend exposes a deeper malaise: the commodification of education. When schools begin to operate like businesses chasing growth targets, the priorities inevitably change. Investment flows not necessarily into better teaching or infrastructure, but into branding, marketing, and mechanisms to justify higher fees. Air, conditioned classrooms and glossy brochures often take precedence over teacher training or academic innovation. The consequences are far, reaching. First, it places an unbearable financial burden on middle, class and lower, middle, class families, many of whom stretch their budgets, or take loans, to afford what they believe is “quality education”. Second, it widens inequality. Good education becomes a privilege rather than a right, reinforcing social divides. Third, it distorts the very purpose of schooling, reducing it to a transactional arrangement rather than a formative experience. Defenders of private schools often argue that they receive little to no government support and must therefore sustain themselves. While there is some truth to this, it cannot justify unchecked profiteering or opaque fee structures.
“The surge in private education is more than a trend—it’s a warning light for public trust, threatening to turn a fundamental right into a high-stakes commodity. To keep the classroom from becoming just another marketplace, we must recalibrate the sector’s moral compass. By balancing private interests with radical transparency and social equity, we can ensure that quality learning remains a universal promise rather than a luxury reserved for the highest bidder.”
Education, unlike other sectors, carries a social responsibility that cannot be ignored in pursuit of margins. There is also a regulatory vacuum that allows such practices to flourish. Fee regulation committees, where they exist, are often under, resourced or lack enforcement powers. Transparency norms are weak, and grievance redressal mechanisms for parents are either ineffective or intimidating. This creates an environment where accountability is minimal and commercialisation thrives. What is needed is not hostility towards private education, but a recalibration. Clear guidelines on fee structures, mandatory disclosure of cost breakdowns, and strict action against arbitrary hikes are essential. Equally important is empowering parent associations and ensuring they have a meaningful voice in decision, making processes. At the same time, the public education system must be strengthened. The growing dependence on private schools is, in part, a reflection of declining trust in government institutions. Rebuilding that trust is crucial to restoring balance in the education sector. Ultimately, education cannot be allowed to become just another marketplace. When schools start behaving like profit, maximising entities and “trainers” teach them how to extract more from parents, the system loses its moral compass. The question is not whether private schools should earn, but whether they should do so at the cost of fairness, transparency, and the very purpose of education. If this trajectory continues unchecked, the classroom risks becoming a market place, and learning, a commodity reserved for those who can afford to pay the highest price.
