| The existing research on preschool enrollments has been narrowly focused, examining the effects of pre-schooling at the micro level, such as its impact on the cognitive development of children or how preschools function. Very little research has been done analyzing the macro-level linkages between preschool enrollment and socioeconomic indicators. This dissertation provides a macro-level study examining the expansion of preschool enrollments worldwide. The research is divided into two parts: an aggregate analysis of the determinants of preschool enrollment in a panel of countries, and a detailed case study of preschools in Hong Kong, China.; The study first develops a theoretical framework of supply and demand to study the determinants of preschool enrollments. It then utilizes a multi-variate panel regression analysis of eighty-six countries to determine the effects of a set of economic, social, political, demographic and health explanatory variables on the rates of enrollment in preschools. The empirical analysis shows that sixty-nine percent of the variation in preschool enrollment rates is explained by the following variables: Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita, percent of the population involved in agricultural pursuits, percent of the population in urban areas, the country's fertility rate, the primary school enrollment rate, prevailing student-teacher ratios, immunization variables, the infant mortality rate, public expenditure on education as a percentage of GDP, public expenditure on education as a percentage of total government expenditure, female labor force participation, and adult illiteracy. The relative role of these variables in influencing enrollment rates is also determined.; The case study of Hong Kong examines the interplay of the various determinants of schooling at a micro level. It illustrates the role played by changes in government policies, immigration, the East Asian economic crisis, and other variables in the drop of preschool enrollment rates in Hong Kong in recent years. |
