BY THE WAY: Is Education Market A Threat to Justice and Equity?
Dr Noour Ali Zehgeer
Strong public investment, inclusive policies, and robust regulation of private providers are essential to prevent exploitation and ensure minimum standards of quality and access.
In today’s time the tendency to see education as a business rather than a service is growing rapidly. The commercialization of education, in which education is made something to be bought and sold like a commodity, becomes a serious challenge for the future of the country. This tendency not only affects the quality of education but also increases social inequalities.
Over the past few decades, education across the world has increasingly been shaped by market principles. Schools and universities are now often described as “service providers,” students as “customers,” and learning as an “investment” expected to generate economic returns. While this market-oriented approach has been justified in the name of efficiency, innovation, and consumer choice, it has also raised serious concerns about justice and equity. Treating education as a commodity rather than a public good risks deepening social inequalities, marginalizing vulnerable groups, and undermining the broader social purpose of education.
The basic aim of education is to build up a person’s character, ability to think and develop social responsibility. But when education is used as a tool for profit, its focus shifts away from knowledge and towards money. Private educational institutions limit education only to the rich class by imposing large fees, thus closing the door on higher education for poor and middle-class students. One of the most significant threats posed by the education market is unequal access. Private schools and elite universities often offer superior resources, smaller class sizes, advanced facilities, and stronger networks. These advantages are disproportionately available to affluent families. Meanwhile, underfunded public institutions struggle to compete, resulting in overcrowded classrooms, limited support services, and lower educational outcomes.
This stratification creates a two-tier system: high-quality education for those who can afford it, and minimal education for those who cannot. Rather than functioning as a ladder for social mobility, education becomes a mechanism for maintaining existing class structures. Children from disadvantaged backgrounds are effectively locked out of opportunities that could transform their lives.
At the same time, marketisation also affects education quality. Sometimes institutions tend to focus on outcomes and promotion rather than on holistic student development. The thinking of selling degrees as a product undermines the true purpose of education.
The commercialization of education also affects the role of teachers. Teachers are seen as a service provider instead of a knowledge guide. This reduces the depth of teacher-student relationships and makes the learning process mechanical.
A more dangerous aspect of this tendency is that it further increases inequality in society. Those who have the money do get a better education, while the poor are left behind. This undermines the basic principles of social justice and equality.
The solution to this problem is that both the government and society should work together to protect education as a right. The state education system needs to be strengthened, fees must be controlled and quality education must be provided to every class. Also, it is necessary to re-establish moral principles in education.
In ancient times, education was considered as ‘donation’ and a sacred service. Sharing knowledge in the Guru-Chela tradition was the best work. But nowadays, education has become such a ‘product’, which is being sold and bought in the market. This commercial form of education itself is called ‘Marketisation of Education’.
The growing chasm between the rich and poor the deadliest effect of the commercialization of education is that it divides society into two parts. Expensive private schools and universities are only for the rich class. On the other hand, talented children from the poor classes are deprived of higher education due to lack of tools. This phenomenon is destroying the concept of equality in the country.
Profitability instead of quality When education becomes a business, the primary purpose of institutions is not to ‘distribute knowledge’ but to ‘make profit’. Many private ones charge high fees, but there are neither qualified teachers nor required infrastructure. As a result, students have degrees, but skills remain severely lacking.
Mental stress and competition Marketization has made education a blind race. Coaching centres and private institutions have put so much pressure on students to get a hundred percent score that children’s childhood and creativity are being destroyed. This pressure often causes mental stress and events such as suicides among students.
The decline of morality the purpose of education was to produce good people, but in a commercial environment students have come to consider themselves as ‘customers.’ When education is purchased, the sacred relationship between teacher and student ends and is limited to ‘service provider’ and ‘client’. This leads to decline in moral values in society.
Lack of research and originality the market only sells what is demanded. Likewise, the emphasis on purely ‘market oriented’ courses (such as engineering, management) is being taken over by the commercialization of education. Subjects such as literature, history, philosophy and basic science, which are indispensable for the intellectual advancement of any nation, are lagging.
Finally, it can be said that the commercialization of education is fatal for the future of the country. If education is not stopped from becoming merely a business, it will deepen inequality and injustice in society. Therefore, education should only be seen as a sacred responsibility and social right.
Justice in education requires deliberate intervention to ensure that social and economic inequalities do not determine educational outcomes. Equity does not mean treating everyone the same but rather providing additional support to those who face greater barriers. Market systems, by contrast, assume a level playing field that does not exist.
The state therefore has a crucial role to play. Strong public investment, inclusive policies, and robust regulation of private providers are essential to prevent exploitation and ensure minimum standards of quality and access. Without such safeguards, the education market risks prioritizing profit over people.
(STRAIGHT TALK COMMUNICATIONS EXCLUSIVE)
