Nearly One in Three School Students in India Now Takes Private Coaching, Govt Survey Shows

According to a recent detailed survey by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI), almost a quarter of school children in India are now taking private coaching, a fact that underscores an increasing trend that is most evident in urban districts. The 80 th round of the National Sample Survey, the Comprehensive Modular Survey on Education 2025, is also useful in identifying the difference in education spending and schooling patterns in urban and rural India.

Urban vs Rural: Differences in Private Coaching and School Enrollment

The survey also found that in urban regions, private coaching is more common where 30.7% of the urban students obtain supplemental private tuition while in rural regions 25.5% obtain. Such a trend  shows increased accessibility and readiness of urban families to invest in further education support. Urban households incur an average annual spending of 3,988rs/per student in coaching that is more than twice that incurred by rural households by 1,793rs/per student.

The survey also indicates a distinct gap in the pattern of school enrollment. Rural education is dominated by government schools which admit approximately two-thirds of rural students (66%), with only 30.1% of urban students attending government schools. The private aided and unaided schools combined to enrol approximately 70 percent of students in urban schools, of which the unaided private schools contributed more than half of the city enrolments.

Education levels increase the costs of coaching

The price of private coaching jumps significantly as grade level rises. The families of urban students at the higher secondary level (11 and 12) spend on average an annual amount of Rs 9,950 on coaching at this stage which is more than twice as compared to rural students who spend 4,548. This upward trend in the cost of coaching is noticeable at preschool level with average costs amounting to approximately Rs 525, increasing to the high secondary school costs amounting to Rs 6,384 per students within the country.

Financial Burden and Household Spending Patterns

As well as the increased financial cost of the private coaching, the survey points out the large discrepancies between government and private school expenditure on overall education. Average spending by families with children in government schools on education is Rs 2,863 per capita per year, whereas spending in non-government schools is almost nine times that, or Rs 25,002. The students of the private schools are primarily paying course fees (95.7%), as compared to only 25% in the government schools.

Transportation, uniforms and books are other serious educational costs, and they are even more expensive in urban families that also incur heavy tuition and coaching costs. Such differences highlight the existing differences in access and affordability of quality education in urban and rural India. 

Growing Influence of Private Coaching in Indian education sector

The increase in private  coaching, also known as shadow education, reflects the desire of parents to achieve higher academic results in the conditions of high competition to get access to good university places and to find a career. Although the government schools continue to play a vital role as a form of rural education, the increased need of taking private coaching in the urban sector is an indication of greater socioeconomic changes in terms of aspirations and educational investments.

As the National Education Policy of India tries to enhance equitable access and quality, the results of this survey bring up some vital questions regarding the contribution of private coaching to intensifying education disparities and financial strains at the household level. Policymakers should take a cautious look at interventions that both correct the merits and the drawbacks of the booming private coaching market, as well as enhancing the state education system.