Socio-economic Determinants of Demand for Private Tutoring

This study examines socio-economic factors underlying the demand for private tutoring. The analysis utilizes two samples of students from lower- and upper-level secondary schools in Poland based on the PISA 2006 data set. Special attention is paid to channels through which private tutoring may endure socio-economic inequalities, especially in the context of the gender gap in education outcomes. We find that parents' decisions concerning private education are sensitive to student gender, which may raise concerns for policymakers committed to provide equal opportunities and outcomes in education. At the level of gymnasium (lower-level secondary school), female students are more likely to enrol in private tutoring in mathematics than male students. The evidence indicates the opposite with respect to private tutoring in Polish and preparatory courses for the gymnasium final examination. The grade from the final exam does not affect the probability of graduating from gymnasium, but it is used by upper secondary schools for the admission purpose. In upper secondary schools, we find that male students are less likely to participate in private education services than female students. This may be indicative of an increase in power of students in household's decision-making as they graduate from gymnasium.