Learning English in the shadows: Taiwanese students’ reflections on their English private tutoring learning experiences

Abstract

Private tutoring has received increasing research attention as a global phenomenon, but awareness of its impact on students’ language learning and pedagogical discussions is lacking. This study investigated 35 Taiwanese learners’ English private tutoring (EPT) experiences based on their reflections on language learning after finishing their secondary education. A background questionnaire and one-on-one semi-structured interviews were administered to collect participants’ data. The present study found that the participants had complex, inconsistent, and contradictory attitudes toward EPT. Although the interviews revealed the students’ needs that could be met by private tutoring institutions, the students’ reflections on EPT indicated that students were negatively affected in terms of language learning, educational experience, pressure, and values. Moreover, EPT was not considered an effective way to learn to use authentic English to communicate because of its overemphasis on examination skills. The effects of the contextual realities of learning for the purposes of assessment and achievement in language proficiency scores were explored to determine whether these realities undermined the aim of education. This study sheds light on the impact of private tutoring as it has become more than a form of shadow education and has emerged into the mainstream.