9th September 2010 9:00
By Blue Tutors
There is a common criticism of private tuition, which is that it increases social inequality. Why is it fair that those who can afford to pay for a tutor should do better in GCSE and A-level exams than their peers who can’t afford a tutor?
It’s an interesting point of view, but most people would probably consider it very reasonable for anyone to pay for teaching and training. The desire to improve yourself and learn new things is an ethical and noble endeavour, certainly more so than many other things that one can choose to spend their money on.
Of course, the counter-argument is that this kind of extra help simply isn’t ‘fair’, and fairness, however someone defines it, tends to be something which everyone wants to exist in education, if not in every aspect of society. However, taken to its extreme, this idea leads us to a situation where every student must be treated in exactly the same way, no matter what their learning difficulties, or what they excel at.
For anyone who enjoys teaching, whether it’s a tutor or a school teacher, they will tell you that the most exciting aspect of what they do is seeing individuals achieve beyond their expectations. That might mean winning a Nobel Prize for one person, and getting a grade C at GCSE for another. For tutors, we simply see that we’re providing a valued service, something which is completely positive, and in no way negative for the individual we’re helping. You’d imagine that no one would complain if, as a result of private tuition, a student improves and eventually discovers a cure for cancer, or another incredibly valuable achievement.
The trouble is that although that’s how we all want to see education – striving to improve the skills and knowledge of our population – that’s not what it’s become. For many people it’s now about the competition among our peers to get the best GCSE results, and then the best A-levels, then the best degree, then the best paid job. As long as one persons achievement is another’s failure (which is the way our society is set up) then private tuition will always be seen as creating social inequality. However, the answer is to change the system. We should glorify any kind of education and training, but ensure others who can’t afford it aren’t penalised accordingly.