Introduction

The absolutely unique teaching-learning situation that is believed to yield maximum benefits, is the one-to-one arrangements that is where one teacher teaches a single pupil. If we go by the premise that no two children are the same but are of different learning abilities, then the assumption must hold true. However, that would constitute the ideal and would be hardly practical in the world of today, if universal education is accepted as the general rule. At one time, the one-to-one arrangement was the luxury of the rich. Perhaps, it lingers to this day but to a much smaller extent. Nevertheless, it could be equated to the present day phenomenon of the private tutor and private tuition, except that the rationale for it is not quite the same.

How has it come about

What has contributed to its phenomenal growth

It could be argued, perhaps, that the widespread practice and demand for private tuition lie in the emergence of the school system, in the nature of its growth and development.

The Expanding Function of Education

In days gone by, schooling was conducted under the shade of a tree between the teacher and his single pupil, or at most, a handful of pupils. As time passed, the scene changed. Education came to be acknowledged as the agent of social and economic progress. It was advised as the right of the individual. Pressure was brought to bear on society to provide for the education of every eligible child. It was deemed an obligation on the part of society to provide for it.

Emergence of the School

To meet the demand and accommodate the numbers, the concept of the formal school emerged. The school grew larger in terms of overall enrollment. Class size increased. Schools tended to pack children into over-sized teaching-learning groups, at times numbering 20, and in many cases going way beyond this figure.

Parental Concern

This state of affairs came to provoke concern among parents. They were of the view that they compromised the quality of instruction and were in no position to ensure that children would receive individualized attention, consistent with their special needs. In the long run, they feared their children would lose out and fall behind.

Schools, they agreed, served a purpose. They continued to enroll their children in them, very selectively. It was well placed to prepare their children for official academic qualification. It provided an environment to meet the social, physical, aesthetic, moral and emotional growth of children. But the bottom line was academic achievement and they did not perceive the school as being able to satisfy the special needs of children because of its very nature. Schools have done their best, inspite of tight constraints, to provide a variety of remediation activities. But parents remained insecure. They felt that schools had neither the time, the resources nor the capability to provide individually for their children.

Parental Response

In recent times, the concerns have become more intensified. Determined by the level of academic attainment, has become more pronounced. It has raised the premium on education, causing parents to shop around for the most promising schools for their children, to employ costly strategies to ensure their children qualify for such schools. Schools have responded by openly advertising, publicizing and marketing their wares and achievements.

In the face of all these developments, fears and anxieties, parents took it upon themselves to find remedies to compensate for the inadequacies of schools, in so far as the special interest and needs of their children were concerned. One of them was to provide for individualized attention, privately, and quite independently of the school. Hence emerged the practice of private tuition in the wake of which rose the figure of the private tutor.

Private tuition has become almost the norm for any and every school-going child, from the very first year of formal school, to the very last year of it. In quite a few instances, it begins even before the first year. It is no longer confined to children with learning problems but extends to those with no problems but merely to further enhance academic achievement. It encompasses those in schools with top rate performances, as well as those in average schools.

Parents turn to private tuition in despair and not as a slight against or castigation on the effectiveness of schools. It appears to have become the in-thing and does not appear to be restricted to education.

The Big Backlash

Private tuition, hence, has become big business, almost a lucrative service industry. According to press reports, millions of dollars are consumed in paying for it. Private tuition schools and agencies have sprouted up by the score. Individuals advertise their services in the classified sections of newspapers, at supermarkets, via the internet and even drop flyers into private post-boxes. They inflate their resumes, and tout and parade their credentials. Even school children at higher levels of education have jumped onto the bandwagon to pick up some pocket-money. Some are genuine, responsible, competent and conscientious. Many are not.

We read reports of parents being cheated. Some are devastated with the outcome after having hired a private tutor. They are irregular, seldom punctual, failing to establish a positive rapport with the tutee. We have read of children being molested by private tutors. Parents have often asked for help to secure a good tutor, how to assess the credentials of a tutor. Some complain that inspite of private tutoring, the child has made no progress, while yet others want to know how and when to intervene in the relationship between the tutor and the tutee.

Whatever the position and pitfalls, the fact is that the phenomenon of private tuition is here to stay. The demand for it will continue to grow. Wherever there is a high premium on education, private tuition will take center-stage. This very environment will support and sustain its presence and growth.

Basic considerations

Private tuition can serve as an effective means of enhancing the learning of a child provided certain conditions prevail.

1. Justification

First, there must be a rational basis to the decision in introducing it. If it is a case of keeping up with parental guilt, because it is believed to be useful, will compel a child to stay by his or her books, help in completing homework and so avoid problems in school and that it is good for disciplining of the child, then it must prove counter-productive. Hence, the first requirement is that it must be intended to serve a precise and specific purpose.

2. Limiting Extent

It has to be in relation to a particular subject, or two or three, at the most, perhaps with the core subjects. Extending it across all subjects would amount over-reacting and over-doing, Children will react adversely. This could lead to a double dose of school, as well as extra assignments set by the tutor, which will affect performance in school.

3. Identify Source

It must apply to a subject in which a child appears to be encountering learning difficulties, as reflected by stagnant or falling grades. The source of problem has to be identified, whether it has to do with poor grasp of basics or concepts. To be able to do so, a tutor must have diagnostic skills.

4. Attitude Blockage

Aside from learning difficulties in specific subject areas, there could also be attitude problems affecting a child’s performance. This would be reflected in grades across all subjects. Or it could even be some physiological or emotional block. Again, it would serve no purpose if a tutor kept to an ordinary teaching pattern and ignored or was unable to spot the real issue. This would call for a tutor who had some grounding in the process of learning or who was in possession of motivational skills.

5. Addressing the problems

After the real source of the problem has been identified, then the tutor must have the skills to address and resolve it and reinforce understanding. Often, the source of the problem can be identified through consultation with the school. If he cannot do so, then private tuition must be a futile venture and a waste of good money.

6. Intervening

Parental intervention and communication with the tutor have to be maintained to ensure that the tutor is tackling the problem at its source. This would avoid conflicts over differences in methodology between that of the school and the private tutor which can confuse the child. Parents need to monitor that he private tutor is doing what they want him to undertake and not what he chooses to engage in. often, there is a tendency to prepare the child so as to be one step ahead of the class. This can create a false sense of security and cause irreparable damage to a child. Periodic private tuition alone will not pay full dividends without qualified and skilled tutors. Parental interest, subtle intervention and the creation of a supportive home environment are equally important, especially with regards to nurturing and development.

7. Timing

The timing in the introduction of private tuition, also, needs to be in a calculated move. To start without any basis or that the sooner it is introduced the better, can make the child become too dependent on the tutor. It should come only when there appears to be justification and not right from the very start of some level of schooling.

8.Involving child

Finally, a child, even at a primary level, is able to assess and judge his or her needs and in relation to particular subjects and indicate when help is needed and the nature of the help needed. It would be prudent, therefore, to discuss the matter with the child and to structure the tuition in accordance with the preferences of the child. When a child is drawn into negotiation process, the more positive would be the child’s response.

9. Enriching

We should see private tuition in much broader perspective than just addressing perceived or limited learning difficulties. It could also serve as an enrichment agent.

Should a child exhibit talent or interest in a particular subject which is reflected in creditable school performances, a skillful, knowledgeable and competent tutor can nurture and nourish it even further. Schools may not be able to provide for the development of such talent. Again, only someone who is suitably trained can do so.

Summary

Private tuition can serve useful purpose but only in the presence of certain conditions. Private tuition, to be effective, calls for specialized skills and an appreciation of the learning process. Academic qualifications, higher than that of the tutor or even evidence of long years of private tutoring is not inadequate nor can it be assumed that a qualified classroom teacher can measure up.