The Shadow Education System: Private Tutoring and its Implications for Planners

Abstract

This booklet problematises the phenomenon of private tuition. It states that private tuition has become part of the education environment to such an extent that nobody really questions its existence. Private tutoring has grown to become a vast enterprise and fee-free education doesn't necessarily mean free of cost. A central argument is that private supplementary tutoring deserves much greater attention than it has so far received. Different sides of private tutoring are discussed with the aim of uncovering both positive and negative aspects. The author questions whether schooling in the public system should be free of charge since people appear both willing and able to pay a lot of money for private tutoring. However, private tutoring may have an impact on social inequalities and economic development in different societies. Corruption is not mentioned, but there is a clear connection between what is said here about private tutoring and various forms of government corruption.