According to the definition given by economics, public goods refer to various services provided by the government to families. Public goods cover a wide range, such as national defense, public safety, justice, administration and economic regulation. , are services provided by the government to residents. In addition, education services, medical care services and social security services provided by the government are also public goods.

Private products and public products are different in nature. Private products refer to products and services provided by families or enterprises through the market. In terms of services, all kinds of services provided by families or enterprises, including education and medical care services provided by families or enterprises, are private products.

If public goods (services provided by the government) and private goods (services provided by families or enterprises) are regarded as two extremes, then what lies between them is quasi-public goods. Quasi-public goods are services provided by a social group (such as collective organizations, associations, clubs, foundations, etc.). ).

Public goods are a kind of service without exclusivity. All residents enjoy the services provided by the government. One person's consumption of this public product does not exclude others' consumption of this public product, or even reduce others' consumption of this public product. The non-exclusiveness of national defense, public safety, justice and other services fully illustrates this point. However, quasi-public products and private products are different, and they are exclusive. For example, a service provided by a social group or a service provided by an enterprise (or a family) will reduce or even exclude others from enjoying the service when one person enjoys the service.

The price of public goods is monopolistic, that is, it is stipulated by the supplier, and there is no room for bargaining, and all fees are charged according to the regulations. However, some users can not pay (tax-exempt households) or pay less (tax-reduced households), and some users do not have to pay according to regulations (referring to the universality of tax payment). The price of private products may be monopolistic or competitive. If it is competitive, it can fluctuate with the change of supply and demand, or bargain. Private products are charged according to the unit products, and those who enjoy them pay, those who don't enjoy them pay, those who enjoy more pay, and those who enjoy less pay less. The price of quasi-public goods is somewhere between the two. They are neither as monopolistic as the prices of public goods nor as likely to bargain as the prices of private goods. On the other hand, they can charge according to the regulations like public goods, or they can charge according to unit products like private products. In other words, the price of quasi-public goods is uncertain.

According to the definitions of public goods, quasi-public goods and private goods given in economics, we can think that the nature of educational products (that is, educational services) has the following types:

(1) Educational services with the nature of pure public goods. The following educational services provided by the government as a supplier are purely public goods:

(1) compulsory education;

(2) Special education refers to the education provided by the government for children and adolescents with physical defects such as blindness, deafness and mental retardation, as well as the work-study education for middle school students who are not suitable for ordinary middle schools because of minor crimes;

(3) Public education in the form of radio and television;

(4) National civil servant education.

The reason why these educational services are pure public goods is mainly because they fully conform to the meaning of the above-mentioned public goods. Those who receive these educational services do not pay directly, but the cost of maintaining these educational services is borne by the government financial department, and those who do not enjoy these educational services also need to pay (such as paying taxes).

(2) Educational services that are basically public goods. The government is also a provider of such educational services. This type of educational service includes:

(1) Education of various institutions of higher learning, secondary specialized schools, senior middle schools and vocational and technical schools invested by the government;

(2) All kinds of adult education funded by the government;

(3) government-funded preschool education;

(4) Other forms of education funded by the government.

These educational services are basically public goods, because although the funds of these educational services are mainly provided by the government and depend on the funds allocated by the financial department, these educational services are not completely exclusive, which means that some people enjoy these educational services, at least reducing the enjoyment of others. For example, institutions of higher learning, secondary specialized schools and even senior middle schools have limited enrollment places. Some people are admitted, others are not. The educational service of pure public goods has no such exclusivity.

(3) Educational services with the nature of quasi-public goods. The education of quasi-public goods includes the following forms:

(1) All kinds of schools, training courses and cram schools set up by a social group, collective organization or association for its own members or their children, or mainly for its own members and their children;

(two) enterprises use their employees and their children, or mainly use their employees and their children to run various schools, training courses and cram schools;

(3) In order to increase income, some government-funded schools recruit some self-funded students or set up some self-funded classes in addition to normal enrollment. Because of self-funded students or self-funded classes or classrooms, teaching equipment, teachers, etc. It is still mainly funded by the government. It is different from the educational service of private products, but it is also different from the educational service of public products, so it can be regarded as a quasi-public product educational service.

(4) Educational services of purely private products. Educational services of purely private products can take the following forms:

(1) Individuals serve as tutors for some families and get remuneration from private individuals;

(two) individuals recruit apprentices who are pure apprentices, disseminate knowledge and skills to apprentices, and collect remuneration from apprentices; Or, individuals recruit apprentices who mainly study arts and impart knowledge and skills to apprentices, and apprentices help the master in a free or low-paid way;

(3) Individuals (or several individuals) run cram schools and vocational training courses. Recruit students and charge them fees as school funds.

These educational services are regarded as purely private products, not only because they are strictly exclusive, but also because all the expenses of educational services are provided by those who enjoy such educational services. Pay by unit product, and individuals who provide such educational services need to pay a start-up fee in advance.

The educational service of private products is different from the educational service of pure private products. If individuals get certain subsidies in the process of running schools (whether these subsidies are provided by governments at all levels or social organizations and enterprises), and the charging standards are appropriately lowered in the process of charging, then this kind of educational service can be considered as a private product.