Private tutoring at transition points in the English education system: its nature, extent and purpose

mathematics, from less than 5 to over 80 per cent (Baker, Akiba, LeTendre & Wiseman,
2001). High levels of private tuition were reported in countries such as Columbia, Latvia,
Japan, Hong Kong and Korea whereas there was much less in most West European countries.
About 10% of eighth grade students in England had extra lessons in mathematics during the
1994-5 school year, the second lowest proportion in the 41 countries surveyed.

Large differences between countries were also found in the PISA survey undertaken in 2000
(OECD, 2001). This survey covered a wider range of subjects than TIMSS as students were
asked about regular attendance at remedial courses in the language of assessment and in other
subjects, training to improve study skills or private tutoring. In the UK, 24 per cent of
students reported having these forms of support, compared to 71 per cent in Japan and 58 per
cent in Korea. Differences in the estimates provided by the PISA and TIMSS surveys may be
attributed to the scope of questions, which was wider in the PISA survey than in TIMSS.

Neither survey provides sufficiently detailed information to enable comparisons to be made of
the extent of tutoring in different subjects. National surveys are required to uncover more
detail about the nature and extent of tutoring yet to date very few have been carried out in
Western Europe.

Factors affecting the employment of tutors

Private tutoring appears to be increasing in some parts of the world, including Germany
(Mischo and Haag, 2002), Canada (Davies, 2004), and Eastern and Southern Africa (Paviot,
Heinsohn, and Korkman, 2008). Reasons vary from one country to another and include school
reforms that have introduced standardised curricula coupled with increased testing, which has

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