The Tutoring Revolution Will Not be Televised

A tutoring revolution is already sweeping through powerful collectives online, parts of Asia, and throughout the western world. Education in general is becoming somewhat of a cyborg, where the human and virtual worlds meet. The movement is still in its infancy, but the numbers and trends clearly show a mind boggling amount of room for growth.

The Catalyst

In the ruins and ashes of traditional education systems in places like America, supplemental tutoring is going to be a powerhouse of not only job growth, but a spur in the side of national testing scores. While the costs of university life inflate to high Heaven, the cost of private tutoring is evening out because of high demand. Online tutoring is even less costly, but proving to be just as influential.

Countless teachers are finding out that going online, starting their own tutoring franchise, or just taking on a few students part time, is preferable to the decimated and debt ridden system of the last few generations. Sadly, the overall average hourly rate for classroom educators in the US is $21.97, barely more than 50% of the hourly wage of the average private instructor.

In Asia, the booming of population and westernization has bred fierce drive for tutors, making some of them more famous than American athletes or movie stars. Right now in the east private tutors are making handsome livings that can get as high as $5-$6 million.

The Evolution of the Tutor

  • In America, consumers are spending between $5-$10 billion a year on academic tutoring services and this is trending upwards.
  • The annual rate of increase in spending on tutoring in general is holding steady at +5%.
  • In Asia, particularly places like Singapore, South Korea, and Japan, online tutoring has become a phenomenon as powerful as Hollywood or the India Bollywood Empires.
  • From the industrialized to the modernizing world, spending on tutoring is beginning to rival public sector education systems.
  • One global tutoring market research report estimates that by 2017, tutoring and supplemental education services will break beyond the $100 billion mark.
  • Tutoring is getting more attention than ever because of the fact that after researching 23 nations, both industrial and industrializing, 25% to 90% of students are already receiving some form of supplemental education.

The Trek Towards Virtual Classrooms

Students and parents for a long laundry list of reasons are becoming interested in e-tutoring. It’s cost effective, produces favorable results, and is well received by the younger generations who are already wrapped up in the digital sphere.  (BTW, another trend for better or worse is that we are also about to see a huge “gamification” influence on educational studies, but I’ll save that for another blog.)

It seems easier than ever to get kids interested and involved in virtual classrooms, because they have already connected the digital sphere to nearly all aspects of their lives.

With the Asian model as reference, a similar phenomenon is just beginning to light a spark in America and across Europe. Some say social media streams will be incorporated, mobile technology will play a massive role, and soon there will be a legislative battle between the traditional education system where books can cost hundreds of dollars and ebooks that can cost a couple.

However, like it or not, there will be no stopping a tutoring revolution. It has already gained enough momentum to be an underlying economy that is keeping many afloat.  (Just try to stop someone from teaching guitar lessons in their home or teaching math to their neighbor and making a few bucks. Go ahead, I dare you.)  The tutoring revolution will not be televised, and ironically, with the internet it doesn’t have to be.

https://www.teachprofranchise.net/tutoring-one-of-the-next-big-trends-in-education/
https://blog.socrato.com/global-private-tutoring-market-continues-strong-growth/
https://www.sfgate.com/business/prweb/article/Need-to-Achieve-Academic-Excellence-Drives-Demand-3981097.php

LRNGO Launched on 11/11/12

Hi everyone, as most of you know, we dropped everything recently to start this company and implement an idea that we thought might change the world.  The idea is to create a free website that is the first social marketplace of learning – a place where everyone can find each other locally or globally to connect, teach and learn.  As of 3PM today on 11/11 2012, we are now live here at www.LRNGO.com.  It is brand spanking new, so there is no one on it yet, but it is free to use and list.  If enough people use it the first year, we will keep it going.

Use this website how you wish.  If you want to advertise your hourly services to make money teaching what you know, you’re free to do so.  If you want to search for someone near you (or online) to teach you something of interest and contact them, go ahead–there are no restrictions.  If you want to match up and find someone to teach you in return for learning something from you, you can start a conversation.  Check back often as we will be adding a lot of new features.

I believe in the importance of group learning and schools, but true change in education will never come just from within the walls of the classroom. It’s going to come from us – all of us. There’s something we can all learn from each other, and throughout our lives we are all both students and teachers.  Please take a look and spread the word.  Love to all of you.

All the best,
David Brake