Factors that influence demand of private supplementary tuition and its perceived impact on students’ achievement in mathematics in Botswana

Abstract

Private tuition also referred to as ‘Shadow education’ has emerged as an important parallel education sector due to its growing demand globally. In Botswana, the increase in demand is evidenced by increased advertisements and tuition centres especially in urban settings. The purpose of this study was to establish the factors that drive the increased demand for private tuition. Secondly it sought to establish if private tuition has any impact on performance in mathematics. The study employed a descriptive survey research design. The target population was senior secondary school students and mathematics teachers. The sample was drawn from Form Five/Four students from two private and two public schools in Gaborone and their mathematics teachers. Stratified purposeful sampling was used to select the schools. Simple random sampling was used to select the Form Five/Four classes and convenience sampling for the mathematics teachers. The instruments were questionnaires for the students and semistructured interviews for the teachers. Validity was done by input of supervisor and pilot study. The questionnaire items were analyzed by using descriptive statistics such as frequency counts, percentages and correlations. The interviews were analyzed by identifying the patterns in the data with reference to the research questions. The findings of the study revealed that poor performance and preparation for examinations were the main factors for the increased demand for private tuition. Secondly, engaging in private tuition may not necessarily improve performance in mathematics.