Private Tutoring Classes and Emotional Well-Being in China: Bidirectional Relationship and the Role of Academic Achievement

Abstract

The Chinese education system is characterized as highly meritocratic and examination-oriented. Scores in high-stakes public standardized examinations mainly determine upward educational transitions. Private tutoring classes (PTCs) are a typical measure to boost students’ academic achievement. Mental health is also assumed to affect one’s behaviors and educational outcomes, playing a key role in the stratification process. However, few studies discuss (1) the bidirectional relationship between PTC attendance and emotional well-being, and (2) the role of academic achievement in determining PTC attendance and moderating the relationship between the two variables. This study fills these gaps by analyzing the 2013–14 and 2014–15 waves of data from the China Educational Panel Survey. Using a cross-lagged model, the author only finds a positive association between prior emotional well-being and later PTC attendance. Moreover, the positive association between students’ prior academic achievement and their later PTC attendance suggests that PTCs tend to serve higher-performing students. Examining the heterogeneity of the bidirectional relationship in terms of academic achievement, the author finds that only low-achievers follow a similar pattern as shown in the full sample model. This study will enrich the understanding on how mental health together with PTCs attendance contributes to the educational stratification process.