28th March 2018 9:00
By Blue Tutors
Private tuition is harming social mobility according to an article published on the Royal Society of Chemistry’s website. The number of students who engage a tutor outside of school hours has been rising steadily over the last 20 years, and most of these students are from more affluent backgrounds than peers who cannot afford the same level of help. The concern is that we are missing out on top level graduates because poorer students are not being given good access to tuition.
The education system in the UK is the envy of many countries in the world. Oxford, Cambridge and other Russell Group universities produce some of the top graduates globally, and attending one of these prestigious institutions opens doors for students to a world of possibilities. We all share the hope that these opportunities are available to every student in the country, but when so many students (up to 95% in some demographics) receive weekly help from a home tutor, is it possible for those without such specialist help to effectively compete with their tutee counterparts?
The argument put forward is that technology can help to close this social gap. There are many online education aids available now which students can use outside of school hours to boost their grades. Also, online tuition is one of the fastest growing sectors inside the tuition industry, and since many tutors are happy to accept a reduced fee when tutoring online, this provides a genuine way for parents on a budget to access a service which may have previously been out of reach.
Original article: https://eic.rsc.org/endpoint/private-tuition-harms-social-mobility/3008817.article