Ask any student if they need or like tuition, and the likely answer is an emphatic ‘NO’. But ask any parents and a majority will answer otherwise.
According to the Department of Statistics, their most recent Household Expenditure Survey reported that Singaporean parents spend S$1.4 billion on tuition. This is supported by a corresponding increase in the number of tuition and enrichment centres (from 700 in 2012 to 950 in 2019) as reported in The Straits Times.
In Singapore, 67% of local parents enrolled their children in tuition. 80% of them believe that tuition is beneficial to their children’s education, and that tuition is necessary for their kids to stay competitive with their peers (46%).
In fact, 1 in 3 local parents think their kids should start tuition in preschool, before they begin primary school. With tuition such an entrenched practice here, we examine the value of having tuition and explore if tuition is really necessary in Singapore?
Read also: Does your child need enrichment classes? Look out for these signs!
Is tuition in Singapore necessary?
We think it is. Parents send their kids to tuition because they worry their kids will not be able to compete with their peers. This concern might stem from the fact that our student to teacher ratio in local schools is 40 to one. Tuition can help ensure that the students are able to keep up with the curriculum and not fall behind their peers.
Tuition can also help mitigate the gaps that students with different learning styles encounter. Students with learning difficulty or challenges might find that tuition is necessary to help them keep pace with the local curriculum.
The major milestone exams (PSLE, O-levels, A-levels) in our local systems, coupled with parents’ desire for their kids to succeed in education also present stressful platforms for the students. Tuition can help lessen these pressures and anxiety.
Finally, above-average students who are aiming for specialty programmes like Gifted Education Program (GEP), Integrated Programmes (IP), Olympiads, or SATs require tuition to help them achieve higher levels of learning.
For some parents, tuition is a means to pursue the perfect grades. But does attending tuition translate into good grades?
This is not necessarily true. Take 19-year-old NTU undergrad, Iris for example. She majors in Mathematics and Economics and has never had tuition in her entire life.
She shares that “it is not necessary to have tuition to be able to do well in school or examinations because in my opinion, it really depends on one’s ability to cope and understand the school work. Moreover, it is also important that the individual has the determination to want to do well.”
Unfortunately, not all students have the drive or determination like Iris. Students who are not disciplined to work on their own see tuition as opportunities for guided practice and revisions. They have access to tutors who can clarify the subject and clear away doubts.
Tuition also allow them to gain more knowledge, thereby reinforcing their learning and understanding of the subjects. For these students, they see the benefits of tuition and improvements in their grades.
Read also: Gifted Education Programme: An A-Z Guide for Parents
How do you determine if tuition is necessary?
Before you rush to sign your child up for tuition, determine whether your child really need the tuition, or if he/she will benefit from tuition. Is it an essential requirement that benefits your child? Or are you driven by your own fears that your child cannot cope? Can your child’s learning gaps be easily closed with simple solutions such as self-reflection, parental guidance, or implementing study plans?
If tuition is deemed necessary, consider the following factors:
- What kind of tuition is suitable for your child? Individual home tuition or group tuition at a centre?
- The quality of the tutor? Does this tutor possess the necessary qualifications to teach the subject? Does he/she have a proven track record?
- Has your child’s grades or understanding of subject improved under this tutor?
- Is tuition eating into your child’s time?
Education Minister Ong Ye Kung who is championing the reform of our local education system, empathises with students’ feedback that going for “tuition lessons have taken over their days and weekends and is stressful and exhausting.” As a result, learning is not fun for the students.
He strongly encourages parents not to use tuition as a blanket tool to support their children’s academic progress. Instead, he urges parents to ask themselves ‘What makes your child’s eyes light up?’
So, weigh your options and track your child’s learning journey with tuition. A good rule of thumb to follow is this: if your child feels burdened by tuition, it is time to relook at how tuition can benefit him/her. But if tuition is supporting your child’s academic progress with improvements and good grades, what is the harm in having tuition?
