By Zubeida Mustafa

A mother whose teenaged children are studying in one of the most prestigious schools of Karachi spends her entire afternoon ferrying them from one tutor to another for private coaching.

Apart from the thousands she is spending on her children’s school fees she pays exorbitant amounts to the tutors. This is a story which is not new. It is being repeated in practically every home with school/college going children in almost all strata of society with minor variations. What is intriguing is that the tuition syndrome is catching the child at the early age of five and onwards.

Why is this phenomenon becoming so common? You find coaching centres proliferating all over, while tutors who are not so visible are equally ubiquitous. You go to a bakery to buy bread and there you come across a handwritten notice announcing the services of a tutor coaching students at home for various classes in different subjects. Evidently these tutors are in demand, otherwise they would not have been coming up so fast. Considering the fact that many of those conducting the classes are teachers from reputable schools, one suspects that they also play a role in creating this demand. Continue reading School tuition centre →