The birth of an ‘interim quasi-state school system’

This chapter focuses on the ‘interim quasi-state school system’. It starts with a review of the historical development of unlicensed informal private (UIP) schools and the policies that turned many UIP schools into varied types of quasi-state schools. It then elaborates the formation of three main types of quasi-state schools. Empirical analysis reveals the role that the conflicts and compromises of interests among different actors, including the central, city and district government, UIP schools and state schools, play in the formation of these schools. The formation of this interim quasi-state school system redefines state school education.