S’pore tuition centres drum up business with freebies

SINGAPORE: More tuition centres are distributing eye-catching flyers and uncommon promotional materials – such as foolscap pads, bubble tea and even breakfast sets – outside the gates of schools, which are now keeping a close eye on the situation.

Some centres do it themselves, while others outsource the work. The centre staff or hirees can usually be seen outside brand-name schools, including Hwa Chong Institution (HCI) and Raffles Institution (RI), during examination seasons.

Those who are hired to distribute such materials earn about S$20 (RM63) an hour. They can start as early as 6.40am and leave an hour later.

When The Straits Times visited HCI last Wednesday morning, a woman dressed in black was seen outside the gate near Tan Kah Kee MRT station, giving out some 200 flyers advertising a centre.

The woman, armed with two tote bags of flyers, began distributing them from 6.55am. She left in a taxi nearly an hour later.

HCI said it is aware of tuition centres’ marketing efforts outside its school compound, but has not received any complaints so far.

“We are monitoring the situation to ensure that there is no security and safety threat posed to the school community,” HCI added.

Centre operators said that distributing flyers or other materials outside schools allows them to be more targeted in reaching specific groups.

Real Education Centre, for instance, distributes postcard flyers as well as “seasonal specials” such as McDonald’s breakfast sets to junior college students outside their schools. The centre distributes such items almost every month.

Scoring well in exams is a national obsession. The shadow education, or tuition, industry here is worth more than a billion dollars annually, almost double the S$650mil (RM2.05bil) spent in 2004.

Some parents reportedly spend several thousands of dollars on tuition for their children each month.

An RI student, 17, who declined to be named, said some of his peers would throw the flyers away.

But he added that the marketing effort is sincere, and is “a reminder that academic help is available”.

Economics tutor Anthony Fok, president of the Association of Tutors (Singapore), said giving out promotional materials outside schools may help students make more-informed choices. But the 33-year-old believes most students and parents remain rational, and would consider the tutors’ qualifications, experience and ability to deliver results.

“More often than not, word-ofmouth referrals from friends and relatives are more effective than mere physical appearances or marketing gimmicks,” he said. — The Straits Times/Asia News Network