Early childhood and primary education efficiency in Europe: a data envelopment analysis approach

Abstract

This study explores the use of data envelopment analysis with bias correction of technical efficiency scores to measure ‘efficiency’ in early childhood and primary education. It also advances a potential framework derived from the ‘human capital paradigm’ to support the selection of inputs and outputs in efficiency assessment. Finally, it illustrates some specific features of early childhood and primary education in Europe (as well as the United States and Japan as referential countries) and provides empirical evidence on the heterogeneity of ‘education technologies’ and their performances among these countries. It is found that Nordic countries have the highest output-based technical efficiency.