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Private Tuition in Kenya and Mauritius: Policies, Practices and Parents’ Perceptions Examined from an Ecological Systems Perspective

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Private Tuition in Kenya and Mauritius: Policies, Practices and Parents’ Perceptions Examined from an Ecological Systems Perspective Private tuition in Kenya and Mauritius: Policies, practices and parents’ perceptions examined from an ecological systems perspective. Laura Ciero Paviot UCL Institute of Education Thesis submitted for the degree of Doctorate in Education April 2015 Declaration I, Laura Ciero Paviot, confirm that the work presented in this thesis is entirely my own. Where information has been derived from other sources, I confirm that this has been indicated in the thesis. Word Count (exclusive of the personal statement, appendices and the list of references): 45,014 words. 1 Abstract Since 1990 the Education for All (EFA) movement has acted as a worldwide commitment to the delivery of primary education as a basic human right. Reducing inequalities in terms of school access and academic achievement became a major concern in developing countries where education reforms were inspired by the EFA initiative. This was the case in Kenya and Mauritius, although evidence from the SACMEQ I (1995) and II (2000) survey studies reveals that these two countries presented the highest incidence of private tuition in the southern and eastern Africa region. In turn, such findings raise concern because they appeared to challenge the EFA objectives of quality and equality. The aim of the present thesis is to examine the phenomenon of private tuition in relation to the provision of primary education of good quality to all pupils (EFA initiative) in Kenya and Mauritius. Drawing on Bronfenbrenner’s theory on the ecology of human development the micro, meso and macro systems are examined as the three levels of the ecological environment of private tuition. In this way, attention was focussed on two critical points: (a) the position of parents in relation to the provision of paid extra lessons and (b) the potential tensions between the different ecological levels regarding the notion of educational equality put forward by EFA (the macro level), the national educational policies implemented for primary school (meso level) and the pupils’ school context (micro level). Survey data from Grade 6 pupils who participated in the SACMEQ III (2007) study reveals that paid extra lessons are delivered inside public (government) schools by pupils’ school teachers outside official hours. In addition, interviews with a sample of sixty parents reveal that in Kenya, private tuition is perceived not only as an important academic support but also as a safe environment where pupils are supervised by responsible adults, whereas in Mauritius private tuition is perceived as crucial for academic advancement. In conclusion, it was found that in both countries private tuition represents an integral component within their mainstream education systems. 2 Table of Contents Statement ............................................................................................................. 7 Chapter 1: Introduction ....................................................................................... 16 1.1 Private tuition and its ecological environment ........................................... 16 1.2 Country profiles ........................................................................................ 18 Brief description of Kenya .................................................................................. 18 Kenyan education system .................................................................................. 19 Brief description of Mauritius .............................................................................. 20 Mauritian education system ................................................................................ 21 Summary of chapter 1 ........................................................................................ 22 Chapter 2: Literature review ............................................................................... 23 2.1 The phenomenon of private tuition............................................................ 23 2.2 Private tuition in Kenya and Mauritius ....................................................... 25 2.3 Drivers of private tuition ............................................................................ 39 2.3.1 Lack of regulations and control combined with teachers’ malpractice .... 39 Race for a good secondary school ..................................................................... 40 Parental aspirations ........................................................................................... 41 Positive and negative aspects of private tuition .................................................. 48 Private tuition and its linkages with parental notions ........................................... 52 Importance of access to and quality of education ............................................... 55 Idea of equality in education and the existence of private tuition ........................ 59 2.4 Research questions ...................................................................................... 60 Summary of chapter two .................................................................................... 61 Chapter 3: Research design and methodology ................................................... 62 3.1 Origins of my interest in private tuition ...................................................... 62 3.2 Considerations of my place of work: SACMEQ at the IIEP-UNESCO ....... 64 3.3 Conceptual framework .............................................................................. 66 3.4 Aims and focus ......................................................................................... 73 3.5 Research questions .................................................................................. 74 3.6 Design of the study ................................................................................... 76 Multi-method approach ....................................................................................... 76 Samples ............................................................................................................. 80 3 Measures ........................................................................................................... 87 Cross-cultural research ...................................................................................... 93 SACMEQ III data collection .............................................................................. 100 Interview procedures ........................................................................................ 101 Further ethical considerations .......................................................................... 105 Data analysis techniques ................................................................................. 107 Chapter 4: Analysis of data .............................................................................. 110 4.1 Introduction ............................................................................................. 110 4.2 What are the main features of private tuition in Kenya and Mauritius? .... 110 Characteristics of paid tuition ........................................................................... 110 Profile of pupils taking private tuition ................................................................ 121 Household characteristics of children taking paid tuition ................................... 129 Summary of sub-section 4.2 ............................................................................. 133 4.3 What are the driving forces supporting the prevalence of private tuition? ... 134 4.4 What are the positive and negative aspects of taking private tuition? ......... 139 Summary of sub-sections 4.3 and 4.4 .............................................................. 145 4.5 What do parents believe about ability, effort and self-discipline? ................ 146 4.6 What do parents think about the quality of education provided to their children? ........................................................................................................... 148 Summary of Sub-sections 4.5 and 4.6 ............................................................. 153 4.7 What do parents expect for their children and what does it take to achieve their expectations? ............................................................................................ 153 4.8 What do parents think about the idea of equality in the provision of private tuition? .............................................................................................................. 160 Summary of sub-sections 4.7 and 4.8 ............................................................. 166 Chapter 5: Discussion ...................................................................................... 167 5.1 Research aim of this thesis ........................................................................ 167 5.2 Strengths and limitations of this study ........................................................ 169 5.3 What is actually meant by ‘Private tuition’ in Kenya and Mauritius? ............ 171 5.4 Adverse effects of private tuition: Transition rates and child labour ............ 174 5.5 Parental perceptions of private tuition: implications from a micro level perspective ........................................................................................................ 177 5.5.1 Parents’ reasons for supporting private tuition: its positive and negative aspects .......................................................................................................... 177 5.5.2 Parents’ values and their linkages
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