Literature Review #2

1) 
2) Haupt, Alexander. "The Evolution Of Public Spending On Higher Education In A Democracy." European Journal Of Political Economy 28.4 (2012): 557-573.
3)The article explains the processes which at first cause government to expand public subsidies on education and then its inevitable demise. The initial public spending on education, the author argues, creates an education 'take-off', which in turn creates more skilled parents who also want their children to attend college. Eventually, the demand for college education is so high that greater public subsidies on education becomes unsustainable. As a result, public subsidies on education decrease and private contributions become the main source of finances for education institutions. The equality of opportunity that started with initial public support, inevitably diminishes because of increased demand.
4) Alexander Haupt is a professor at the School of Management in University of Plymouth, UK.
5)skilled class: part of the workforce who had college education
6) "As we have seen, the current call for higher private contributions might rather reflect a broad trend in public opinion than a short-lived political mood. One appeal of the current approach is that both the rise and the fall in subsidies per student follow from a single cause: the increase in the size, and thus voting power, of the skilled class."

So, as the government increases education subsidies, it expands the skilled class. This skilled class, as we expext in a democracy, becomes more influential in policymaking since increased numbers mean more votes. Desiring their children to attend college just like they did, this class asks for public subsidies on education. Even though the government can yield and keep increasing tuition, its finances are limited. The expansion of the skilled class, on the other hand, becomes a continuing trend with more people attenting college.

"the demand for higher education increases with the number of skilled parents because their children attend universities more than proportionally, and the families of students are those who support the respective tax financed subsidy as a means of redistributing resources to them"

An educated society demands their children to be treated in the same manner and get a good education. For that end, they support the tax policies that enable their children to attend college with public subsidies. The same, however, can't be expected from the financially better of segments of the skilled class. These people, being financially better off, have the ability to pay for their own children's college education. As we see in the United States recently, they won't be willing to support policies that make the government tax everybody so public subsidies on education can continue. The idea is "why should I pay taxes so somebody else's children can go to college, I'd rather pay for my own".

7) This article is important for my research because the author explains government policies on education as a process. This is new because most authors argue public subsidies is a matter of choice and policy, not a naturally repeating process. I can implement this process on the situation in America and relate to the recent privatization trend. Is privatization an inevitable product of this process?