MARKET REPORT: TUTORING
THE LEARNING ADVANTAGE
Kids’ tutoring is expected to increase as education and schools become increasingly competitive. Learning opportunities There is ongoing concern over numeracy skills among Australian adults and children, says Mathnasium director of operations, Samantha Aad. She points to data from a global study by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), which conducts a Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA). Pre-Covid, there was evidence of declining performance. “PISA 2018 shows the long-term change in maths performance reflecting Australia having one of the strongest decreases in performance among participating countries and economies,” says Samantha. This is the latest data available, as OECD member countries and associates have postponed the PISA 2021 assessment to 2022 to reflect post-Covid difficulties. There’s no doubt Covid-19 has had an impact on kids’ learning. “The Covid-19 pandemic has affected
children mentally and also in their learning. Technology used for online learning in parts of Australia has been both positive and negative, some students have thrived, while many have struggled and fallen further behind,” she says.
Business opportunities On the business front, Mohan Dhall, Australian Tutoring Association CEO, says the tutoring market had a strong rebound from the Covid lockdowns up until late June 2021. “The lockdowns from late June to early November set everyone back a lot,” he says. “There is expected to be another rebound next year, but no one anticipated Omicron. “There’s quite a lot of uncertainty about openings and closures.” While the government’s jobs outlook data shows strong growth over the next five years, Mohan believes it is difficult
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to predict what this will look like. What he can point to is that every bricks and mortar location will need a really good online supplement. “That’s been the biggest nuance over the last year and a half,” he says. “Franchised organisations did not have a great online offer, but that’s changed.” Among the points potential franchisees should consider while reviewing a franchise business are systems and support. “There will need to be systems in place that are robust in the event of parent complaints, how do you backtrack and find what happened? It’s harder online. “Business owners will need to carefully look at what content is available and what content support there is – how much investment in ongoing development of curriculum is there? This is a significant driver of enrolments.”
