Shedding Light on Shadow Education

This essay review examines four different movies that directly or indirectly refer to the theme of private tutoring or, as it is widely called, shadow education. The movies, directed in locations as diverse as India, Turkey, and Cambodia, are all made from a critical perspective. The directors demonstrate challenges in public education systems and reveal how the privatization of education affects the lives of students, parents, and teachers. The movies differ in genre: Aarakshan is a fiction drama, while the remaining three are documentaries. The documentaries vary in cinematographic techniques, composition, and quality: 3 Saat was made by a professional filmmaker, while Why Private Tutoring? was produced by a student.published_or_final_versio

Measurement Issues in Research on Shadow Education: Challenges and Pitfalls Encountered in TIMSS and PISA

Expanding numbers of researchers are focusing on the scale and impact of private supplementary tutoring. Such tutoring is widely called shadow education, since much of its curriculum mimics that of regular schooling. Although shadow education has expanded significantly worldwide and is now recognized to have far-reaching significance, research faces methodological and conceptual challenges. This paper focuses on analyses of shadow education data from the Third [or Trends in] International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) and the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA). An initial problem arises from definitions of shadow education and therefore from research focus. Further challenges arise from the initial phrasing and then translation of items in international questionnaires. The paper notes that some studies have been grounded in problematic data, which has led to misleading pictures. Methods and approaches are maturing, but much refinement remains necessary for adequate understanding of the nature and implications of shadow education.published_or_final_versio

Evolving ecosystems in education: The nature and implications of private supplementary tutoring in Hong Kong

An established literature draws on ecological concepts to analyse interrelationships within education structures and processes, and the impact of shifting balances. Private supplementary tutoring is a relatively new actor in ecosystems of education around the world. It is creating significant changes in relationships, particularly as they concern the roles of teachers. This paper draws on data from Hong Kong, where private tutoring has become very visible. It presents perspectives on the phenomenon from students and teachers, drawing especially on interview data. It shows that teachers and tutors may sometimes play complementary roles, but that teachers may in some respects be marginalised by the new actors in the ecosystem. Insights from these perspectives suggest a research agenda for other parts of the world as well as for Hong Kong.An established literature draws on ecological concepts to analyze interrelationships within education structures and processes, and the impact of shifting balances. Private supplementary tutoringâ relatively new in ecosystems of education around the worldâ is creating significant changes in relationships, particularly as they concern teachersâ roles. This paper, drawing on data from Hong Kong, where private tutoring has become very visible, presents perspectives on the phenomenon from students and teachers. It shows that these parties sometimes play complementary roles, but that private tutoring may marginalize teachers in some respects. Insights from these perspectives suggest a research agenda for other parts of the world as well as for Hong Kong.postprin

The internal dynamics of privatised public education: Fee-charging supplementary tutoring provided by teachers in Cambodia

Much literature is available on private schools that operate alongside public schools, and on public schools that are encouraged to operate more like businesses in order to become more efficient and client-oriented. This paper, by contrast, focuses on privatisation by default behind a façade of fee-free education. It concerns supplementary private tutoring provided by government-employed teachers, in many cases to their own students in large classes and on the school premises. Drawing on questionnaire and interview data from secondary school students and teachers in one province of Cambodia, the paper examines interlinked factors that contribute to this process. These factors include low teachers’ salaries, lack of instructional time, large classes, and the possibility of different teacher-student relationships in supplementary lessons. The paper is contextualised within the wider literatures on privatisation and shadow education

Intersections of Equity, Quality and Ethics: Shadow Education Provided by Teachers in Myanmar

Session 4: Panel: Private supplementary tutoring in Asia - paper 3This paper focuses on teachers’ involvement in tutoring and its policy implications in Myanmar. Private tutoring has long been a major phenomenon in the country, and informal evidence suggests that it has expanded over the years. Teachers commonly supplement their incomes through private tutoring, reflecting both systemic problems and deeper socioeconomic challenges behind the façade of fee-free public education. The paper draws on interviews with teachers, parents, students and school principals from Yangon region collected in 2016 and 2017. Major patterns of tutoring in Myanmar will be identified for better understanding of the fundamental changes in public-private educational provision and its impact on teachers’ lives and society

Teacher Certification Examinations in Georgia: Outcomes and Policy Implications

Purpose - The chapter explores the newly launched Teacher Certification Examinations (TCEs) in one of the post-Soviet countries, Georgia, and describes the experiences and perceptions of Georgian teachers going through the process of teacher certification. The qualitative study develops an in-depth understanding of the perceived strength and weaknesses of TCE in Georgia. Methodology - This case study was carried out in the spring of 2012 in 17 Georgian schools. School teachers and school principals from public and private schools were interviewed. A convenience sampling technique was used to recruit all participants. In addition to data obtained from research participants, various policy documents, laws on general education, minister's decrees, and statistical databases are analyzed and incorporated into the study. Findings - The data analyses showed that while the certification policy, in some way, increased teachers' social status and prestige in the society, it failed to meet teachers' expectations regarding remuneration policy and professional development opportunities. The TCE, without an adequate compensation policy as well as other types of incentives to increase teacher motivation, creates only a technical threshold for teachers to obtain a teacher certificate to secure jobs, rather than being a catalyst for a genuine professional development opportunity. Value - The study is the first attempt to empirically examine the teacher certification process in Georgia, thus it fills a knowledge gap that exists in the field. The Georgian TCE is the first TCE in south Caucasus; thus, the study of the implementation and outcomes of the Georgian reform provides a unique opportunity for the region and for the rest of the developing world to learn from the successes and failures of the reform process. Copyright © 2013 by Emerald Group Publishing Limited.Link_to_subscribed_fulltex

Shadow Education and the Roles of Teachers in Myanmar: Private Dimensions in Public Schooling

404. Shadow Education: Expansion and Implications