The Price of Perfection: How Private Tutoring Became an Obsession
By Suki Monroe
The 'smart Asian stereotype' isn't just a cliché—it has real manifestations, shaping educational cultures worldwide. One of its most glaring forms is the obsession with private tutoring, a multi-billion-dollar industry that thrives on fear, competition, and inequality.
From an early age, students in are funneled into intensive after-school classes, known in Mandarin as 'bu xi ban' (補習班), meaning 'cram schools.' These aren't supplemental learning spaces but grueling extensions of the school day. After spending hours in the classroom, children are shuttled into evening sessions in mathematics, sciences, English, and more, leaving them with little to no personal time. Education, which should be an avenue for curiosity and intellectual engagement, has been reduced to an endless cycle of academic endurance. Instead of nurturing a love for learning, private tutoring breeds exhaustion, resentment, and an unhealthy obsession with perfection.
But the problem goes beyond burnout. In some cases, private tutoring centers have been caught engaging in outright corruption. There have been reported instances of tutors acquiring and distributing answers to upcoming exams disguised as practice tests. These institutions, desperate to boost their reputation, knowingly violate ethical and legal boundaries, fostering a culture where success is tied not to ability or effort but to financial privilege and deceit.
Private tutoring is a massive business, particularly in Hong Kong, where hourly rates can soar up to HK$1,500 (US$192/£150). These costs place immense strain on families, forcing many parents to sacrifice financial stability just to keep their children competitive. Those who cannot afford it are left at a clear disadvantage, reinforcing class divisions within the education system. The result? A rigged system where wealth, not merit, dictates access to opportunity.
This toxic cycle isn't limited to Hong Kong. In mainland China, the pressure is equally suffocating. Take Ms. Hu, a mother who, in 2018, spent a third of her annual income to send her child to a Shanghai summer school. The following year, tuition fees rose, but her salary remained stagnant. Still, she paid. Why? Because the alternative, her child falling behind, was unthinkable in an education system that equates success with relentless competition. For many parents, tutoring isn't a choice; it's an obligation forced upon them by a system that refuses to slow down.
The deeper issue is that private tutoring isn’t just a symptom of a competitive education system. It is a key player in perpetuating educational inequality. Wealthier students gain an unfair advantage, securing spots at elite universities and accessing global opportunities, which deepens class divides. Moreover, the reliance on private tutors fosters complacency, as students may disengage from school, knowing external help will bridge the gap. Rather than serving as the great equaliser, education has become a tool for perpetuating privilege.
Reforms are long overdue. Governments should redirect their focus and funding toward strengthening schools, rather than allowing private tutoring to act as a crutch for a broken system. Schools should integrate additional support systems, hiring quality educators to provide tutoring within academic institutions—ensuring accessibility for all students, not just those who can afford it. If we truly value equality in education, we must stop normalising a system where success is determined by wealth.
Education should empower, not exhaust. Until we dismantle the obsession with private tutoring, we will continue to widen the gap between the privileged and the disadvantaged. The pursuit of knowledge should not come with a price tag.