• KDI Journal of Economic Policy
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• v.34 no.2
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• pp.139-171
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• 2012

This paper examines the effect of private tutoring expenditures on academic performance of middle school students in South Korea, using data from "Analysis of the Level of School Education and Its Actual condition: Middle School". In the face of endogeneity of private tutoring expenditures, the paper employs an instrumental variable (IV) method and a nonparametric bounding method. Using both methods we show that the true effect of private tutoring on middle school students remains at most modest in Korea. The IV results suggest that a 10 percent increase in tutoring expenditure for Korean, English and math raises a student's test score of the subject at the largest by 1.24, 1.28, and 0.75 percent, respectively. The bounding results also fail to show evidence that an increase in tutoring expenditure leads to economically and statistically significant improvements in test score.

• Journal of Labour Economics
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• v.35 no.1
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• pp.111-136
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• 2012

This paper investigates effects of family size on private tutoring expenditures, using a data set drawn from the Korean Longitudinal Survey of Women & Families (KLoWF). To deal with endogeneity of family size, the paper employs an instrumental variable (IV) method in which the sex of the first-born of the family is used as an IV. The results suggest that quantity-quality trade-offs of children within a family function in a way that varies by the sex of the child. While the effect of an increase in family size on private turoring expenditures of a second-born daughter is negative, the effect for a second-born son is indeterminate. The result for daughters implies that high costs of raising a child are likely to explain low birth rates of Korea.

• Research in Mathematical Education
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• v.7 no.2
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• pp.73-90
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• 2003

In the Republic of Korea, mathematics has always been a major blame for huge private expenditures on so-called "private education," which consists of private tutoring and lessons at "private academies of extra curricula." The private spending on out-of-school education often exceeded public expenditures on schools. In 1997, South Korean Ministry of Education reformed curriculum of mathematics along with other subjects to ease the burden of private education. The aim of this curriculum change was to put a boost on individual students' interests, affections and other attributes toward school mathematics. The essential distinctiveness of the new curriculum of mathematics compared with the previous one is as follows: 1. The implementation of so-called "differentiated curriculum" for grades 1-10. 2. 30% reduction of contents in mathematics and the reconciliation of contents. 3. Elective subjects for mathematics for grades 11 and 12. 4. More uses of technology in mathematics teaching. Firstly, we examine the background of the curriculum reform and analyze the new curriculum according to awareness of educational administrators, teaching environments of schools and readiness of mathematics teachers. Then we find out what kinds of problems it has and look for some suggestions for remedies.