A cross-national analysis of the student- and school-level factors affecting the demand for private tutoring

• Published in: Asia Pacific education review Vol. 14; no. 2; pp. 125 - 139
• Main Authors: Song, Kyoung-Oh, Park, Hyun-Jeong, Sang, Kyong-Ah
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Dordrecht Springer Netherlands 01.06.2013; Springer; Springer Nature B.V; 교육연구소
• Subjects: Ability Grouping; Academic Achievement; Academic Aspiration; Comparative Analysis; Comparative studies; Demand; Education; Educational Attainment; Educational Policy; Educational Quality; Elementary School Students; Fathers; Foreign Countries; Hierarchical Linear Modeling; Homework; Korea; Parent Background; Philippines; Predictor Variables; Remedial Instruction; Romania; Self Esteem; Student Motivation; Student Participation; Taiwan; Tests; Tutoring; 교육학; South Korea; Romania; Philippines; Taiwan; HGLM; Factors influencing private tutoring; Cross-national analysis; Private tutoring
• ISSN: 1598-1037; 1876-407X
• DOI: 10.1007/s12564-012-9236-7

Private tutoring has become a worldwide phenomenon, yet there is little empirical evidence for the main factors leading the demand for private tutoring across nations. Using data from the Third International Mathematics and Science Study of 2003, this study classified the countries into four different groups according to the proportion of student participation in private tutoring and student achievement. Then, the study explored student- and school-level factors influencing the demand for private tutoring. From the HGLM analysis, the results revealed that the demand for private tutoring in Korea and Taiwan, which have higher participation rates in private tutoring and high-school-quality levels, is mostly explained by student-level variables (educational aspirations, instrumental motivation, self-confidence, and father’s education) and school context variables (the community size and school SES). Meanwhile, the demand for private tutoring in the Philippines and Romania, both of which have high incidences of private tutoring and low-school-quality levels, varies widely among schools, and many of the school process variables (e.g., the use of remedial classes, amount of school homework, frequency of tests, and the use of grouping by ability) account for the relationships with private tutoring.