Does Private Tutoring Work? The Effectiveness of Private Tutoring: A Nonparametric Bounds Analysis

Private tutoring has become popular all over the world. However, the evidence on the effect of private tutoring is inconclusive, therefore, this paper attempts to improve the existing literature by using nonparametric bounds methods to find out if private tutoring yields any substantial returns for the individual. The present examination uses a large representative dataset to identify bounds, first, without imposing assumptions and second, it applies weak nonparametric assumptions to tighten the bounds. Under relatively weak assumptions, I find some evidence that private tutoring improves studentsÕ academic outcome in reading. However, the results indicate a heterogeneous and nonlinear effect of private tutoring.