Shadow education: Shapes of private tutoring in e-learning environment

Modern technologies and World Wide Web open new opportunities for smooth learning process making education more accessible and flexible. Digitalization of modern society has resulted in the transformation of all levels of education leading to the transition from mass education to high quality individual training. In modern context the quality of education is viewed as the most important indicator of the institutions’ competitiveness on the market of educational services. The quality of education is the priority of states’ policy agenda around the world. The paper considers “shadow education” and private tutoring, as one of its forms. The term “private tutoring” is defined in the article based on the analysis of legislative and regulatory sources that allow to provide tutoring services using e-learning tools and technologies in compliance with the legal framework of the Russian Federation. The legitimacy of the notion of “private tutoring” in the legislation of Russia is justified in the research. An overview of sites offering tutoring services is given with the comparison of price range, depending on the academic subject and regions of Russia. Besides, the advantages and disadvantages of private tutoring are outlined. The results of the study showed that private tutoring services are in high demand due to two main factors: the insufficient level of public/private education received and the inconsistency in knowledge obtained and the requirements of national and international labor markets. The paper also contains the review of popular educational platforms and online learning tools used by private tutors as well as pros and cons of their application. The results of the questionnaire offered to the academic staff of the V.I. Vernadsky Crimean Federal University, the Sevastopol State University, and the Crimean Fevzi Yakubov Engineering and Pedagogical University show that most of educators practice online tutoring and consider it to be their additional professional activity.