Private Supplementary Tutoring

The International Policy Forum will be organised and hosted by UNESCO’s Section of Education Policy in collaboration with the Chair in Comparative Education at The University of Hong Kong. The Policy Forum will take place on 28 and 29 October 2024 at the UNESCO Headquarters in Paris. The event will build on and further the debate of a 2007 Policy Forum on a related theme.   

Initially gaining prominence in East Asia, private supplementary tutoring has become a global phenomenon with far-reaching implications. Private tutoring can have a positive impact for some students through increased availability and flexibility of learning options, greater parental choice, and a wide range of curricula and instructional materials. Further, it provides employment for tutors, property managers, textbook publishers, and others. Yet it also has potential negative effects including persistent social inequalities, students’ academic burdens, strained household budgets, teachers’ misconduct, and skewed learning for high-stakes examinations. 

Yet many governments are not adequately aware of such predictions and their implications.

Why a Policy Forum on Private Supplementary Tutoring?

Although the expansion is leading governments to pay more attention to private tutoring, some Ministries of Education remain laissez faire and argue that private tutoring is beyond their principal remit about schooling. More proactive governments, in contrast, have developed regulations. These regulations commonly begin by addressing serving teachers who seek to provide tutoring alongside their regular responsibilities. Additionally, governments may regulate the commercial sector, focusing for example on facilities, advertising, curricula, and the qualifications of tutors. The forum will recognize the different and sometimes competing perspectives of different stakeholders. It will also note diverse circumstances around the world, identifying lessons for education policies and practices.

Time and Place

28 and 29 October 2024, 8:30 – 17:30, UNESCO Headquarters, 7 Place de Fontenoy, Paris 07 SP France (by invitation only).

Session Agenda

Day 1: Monday 28 October 2024

-   Welcome and Opening / Keynote

-   Plenary Session 1: Unpacking the phenomenon – Scale and diversity of perspectives

-   Plenary Session 2: Tutoring provision and impact in practice

-   Plenary Session 3: Regulating private supplementary tutoring 

Day 2: Tuesday 29 October 2024

-   Plenary Session 4: Summary of Day 1 and introduction of breakout sessions

-   Breakout Session 5: Deep dive into solutions to address knowledge, policy and action gaps

-   Plenary Session 6: Reporting, conclusion and next steps

Outputs

-   A forum report summarizing key themes discussed and documenting data and evidence that can be used to raise the awareness about the scale, nature and impact of private supplementary tutoring;

-   A policy brief with recommendations that can guide planners and other government officials in their decision-making processes.

Please note that pre-registration has now closed. To reserve a seat, kindly contact us at educationpolicy@unesco.org

Contact

For more information, please contact the Section of Education Policy, UNESCO Education Sector at: educationpolicy@unesco.org

More details are provided in the draft concept note.