Ο αριθμός των μαθητών των Λυκείων επιδρά στο ετήσιο δημόσιο κόστος ανά μαθητή; Η περίπτωση των γενικών Λυκείων της περιφέρειας Κεντρικής Μακεδονίας

Abstract

In the field of education, estimating the impact of   structures size on educational, social and economic variables comprises a significant problem. The main aim of the present study is to investigate the impact that the size of General Senior Secondary Schools in Central Macedonia has on the annual governmental cost per student, during school years 2007-8 and 2010-11. That is before the economic crisis in Greece and during it. For the empirical analysis, the methods of descriptive statistics and Econometrics were employed. The quantitative analysis reveals that the governmental cost per student decreases when the size of the school units increases. Moreover, the governmental cost per student is slightly lower at schools situated in urban areas, as compared to those situated in semi-urban or rural areas. The cost per student was decreased in the year 2010-11 relative to 2007-8. In planning a new architectural action plan, it is proposed that the size of Senior Secondary Schools would be the optimal according to estimations. In this case, there will be significant curtailment of the national cost on Senior Secondary Education in Central Macedonia region. It is recommended that the amount of money derived from the curtailment would be invested on efficient promotional actions, foremost of quality, in the fields of Secondary education and life-long learning. The application of this policy will contribute to the intertemporal advance of the quantity and the improvement of the quality of human capital in the Central Macedonia region, a vital “catalyst” for the promotion of development, the creation of sustainable work opportunities and social cohesion