Women’s education and fertility in select countries of Africa and Asia: moderation by quality of education

Despite a large literature on education and fertility, most studies are narrowly focused on the level of schooling completed. Does the schooling–fertility relationship depend on the quality of education? Is more schooling still associated with lower fertility even when the quality of education is poor? Drawing on Demographic and Health Survey data from 42 countries in Africa and Asia, this study uses cross-national analysis to examine whether the quality of education moderates the schooling–fertility relationship. Findings show that the strength of the schooling–fertility relationship depends significantly on a country’s quality of education: the higher the quality of education, the stronger the negative relationship. But even when educational quality is low, a negative relationship between level of schooling and fertility still exists. By conceptually and empirically distinguishing the level of schooling from the quality of education, this study contributes to a more nuanced understanding of women’s education and fertility.