Shadow Education In Nepal
‘Shadow Education is a form of private supplementary tutoring that mimics and closely parallels curriculum in mainstream education and offers homework support or test preparation’(Bray, 2012). This review aims to explore the causes of student’s motivation towards shadow education. For the purpose of dealing with the issues under shadow education, I have reviewed the book of Mark Bray entitled ‘Shadow Education, Private Supplementary Tutoring and its Implication for Policy Makers in Asia, 2012. It was published in the Philippines. It is the most relevant literature for my study as I am also exploring the policies made by tuition centers to attract the students and what are the factors that motivate the students towards private supplementary education.
I have reviewed an article entitled ‘The Impact of Shadow Education on students’ Academic Achievement: Why the research is inclusive and what can be done about it.’ In this article, the author says that the quality of the instructors and the student’s motivation is important. “As with another type of education, it is important also to investigate the qualities of the instructors and the motivation of the students” (Bray, 2014). Shadow education direct interferes with the achievement of the students but the sight of concerned authority is not over the issues. With the supports of this literature, I will try to explore the policies and offering to compete with the tuition centers in the market. They are applying different strategies to attract students beyond the rules.
Mark Bray has published an article entitled ‘Benefits and Tensions of Shadow Education: Comparative Perspectives on The Roles and Impact of Private Supplementary Tutoring in Lives of Hong Kong Students’. This article reveals the benefits and pressure of shadow education. “Some tutoring has benefits in helping slow learners to keep up with their peers and in stretching further the learning of high achievers. Parents may also prefer to pay other people to manage homework and related stresses. However, tutoring can also increase pressure on young people, and is always not effective” (Bray, 2013). Obviously, private tutoring is beneficial for slow learners because these kinds of learners cannot catch everything their teacher said in the classroom so it is necessary to give extra coaching to those students. Due to the busy schedule of the students and the teacher in a regular class, they might not get sufficient time. The factor which motivates students towards private tutoring is not only the student’s interests. However, tuition centers are not appropriately running. The major question is that whether they are paying reliable tax to the government or not. Is that okay if tuition centers running their monopoly in the education system?
Bray has raised a question among shadow education i.e. whether shadow education is beneficial or tension for students and their parents. “A major question is whether the shadow education reduces or increases stress for youths and their families” (Bray, 2013). However Shadow Education has both advantages and disadvantages. It is beneficial in the sense that it is helpful for slow learners; they can get extra support from tutors, which helps them to keep with their peers. It also helps in doing homework and gaining extra knowledge. It is beneficial for parents because they should not worry about their children’s studies when they are busy with their work. However, it really helps students in their regular study. And if children can’t bring progress in their study it makes parents unhappy and regrets paying money for tutoring. These can be the major parts for the students to motivate themselves towards tuition classes.
Students are mostly motivated towards tuition classes rather than formal classes. There might be various reasons behind it but here I review some literature related to policy and practices of Shadow Education. ‘Partly because of the stratified nature of the school system and post-school opportunity, alongside the regular school system has developed a shadow system of private supplicatory tutoring. It is called a shadow system because it mimics the regular system’ (Bray, 2013 p. 18). The term shadow education is first time used by Mark Bray. ‘This kind of private tutoring has widely emerged as a supplement to public and private schooling in many countries. Especially, Asian countries have researched in shadow education
Mark Bray (2014), argues in his book ‘Confronting the Shadow Education book that the issues associated with private supplementary tutoring need to be confronted. All the aspects arouse do not indicate these are negative, it helps students to learn, to contribute to economic development, providing constructive opportunities for children and youth to interact with peers and others. A mix of positive and negative features creates a complex picture and few societies have well-developed machinery to address the issues. The book ‘Confronting the Shadow Education’ has discussed the provisions like Modes of shadow education which include one to one human tuition, in small groups, large classes, cram school, and online tutoring. Other provisions are tuition classes are running in examination time; France, Greek, Turkey, Egypt have invested more money in private tutoring; and Kazakhstan, Lithuania, Slovakia, Tajikistan, and Ukraine have regularly framework for private tutoring. This book has also mentioned the different policies made by the countries like Turkey, Austria, France, Australia, America, Korea and South Africa, Japan, England, Singapore, India, Portugal, and Macao. Though half of the Asian countries investing money for shadow education, the Nepal government has not made any provision about shadow education. On the other hand, the achievement of the students is relying on tuition classes. The policymakers and concern authorities should research in the area of shadow education and make rules and regulations for Shadow Education.
Education Act and Regulation 2059 (6th amendment) 2067 mentioned that about private supplementary education (schedule 33, section 189 A) If a person wants to establish a coaching center, the application should be filled to the district education office to clarify about subject and grade which s/he wants to establish. DEO can give permission for operating coaching centers according to terms and conditions. Coaching centers have to deposit fifty thousand before taking permission in prescribed banks. The Head of DEO can prohibit coaching centers if they don’t follow the terms and conditions. But they can get a chance to clarify about coaching centers. However private tutoring runs a higher amount of transactions but they are just paying fifty thousand for the first time and they are free to earn millions. Is it fair for the overall education system? Though, the rules are given to the tuition centers, are they following the prescribed rules? These are the major questions behind private tutoring in Nepal.
Though private supplementary education contributes the mainstream education government has not been observing their policies and practices. The provisions for tuitions and extra classes in education act regulation will be reviewed further. The tuition centers are running their business in the name of supplementary education as there is no rules have been made to take them under the education act. It is really amazing why the students are highly motivated towards such classes, though they are getting easily assessable and low-cost education on a regular basis. There is something important reason behind that and that should be investigated. In this regard, I am going to explore those reasons and policies offered by private tuition centers. This review certainly helps this project and I am reviewing the following literature. The aim of this review is to review major policies and documents related to shadow education.
Students are mostly motivated towards supplementary education for various reasons but, in this review, I tried to seek the major motivating factors related to tuition centers. Bray argues that supplementary education is a mixture of benefits and pressure. I found that the low achievers in academics are mostly taking tuitions to maintain their education standards. On the other hand the busy schedule of the parents and students self, they are compelled to take tuition. One of the major reasons behind tuition is the tradition of all students, they only concern themselves with the exams. For the preparation for the exam, students are taking tuition. Private tutoring is beneficial to the students because of the psychological distance between the teacher and the student’s investment both the party become motivated for academic excellence. Beyond the government policy, private institutions offer the guaranteed tuition classes. Their offer and comparatively higher academic excellence motivate the students towards private tutoring.
References
Bray, M. (2013). Procedia-Social and Behavioral Science. Hong Kong: Elsevier Ltd.
Bray, M. (2013). Shadow Education. Journal of International and Comparative Education, 18 to 22.
Mark Bray. (n.d.).
Nepal, M. o. (2059). Education Act and Regulation. Kathmandu: Ministry of Education.
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