Private Tutoring: Evidence from India

Abstract

Drawing on the nationally representative “Participation and Expenditure in Education” surveys, we document the incidence and cost of private tutoring at different stages of schooling over the last two decades in India. As private tutoring involve two decisions: a) whether to take private tuition or not, and b) how much to spend on private tutoring, we estimate the determinant of the two decisions separately using a Hurdle model. We find that private tutoring has been prevalent in India for some time at each stage of schooling. Students in urban areas and private schools are not only more likely to take private tutoring but also spend more on private tutoring. We find that demand for private tutoring is inelastic which implies private tutoring is a necessary good in the household consumption basket. We also find evidence of pro-male bias in both decisions regarding private tutoring.

Keywords: Private tutoring, coaching, costs, India, Hurdle model

JEL Classification: I21, I22, I24