Analysis of the Impact of EBS Usage on Private Tutoring Expenditures during the COVID-19: Focusing on 3rd-year High School Students

Objectives This study aims to empirically analyze the impact of EBS usage on private tutoring expenditures of high school students during COVID-19, and to identify differential impacts based on income level and regional size. Methods Utilizing the 8th-year data of the Korean Education Longitudinal Study 2013(KELS 2013) conducted by the Korea Educational Development Institute, an OLS regression analysis was conducted on 3,444 third-year high school students. Considering that participation in private tutoring may vary depending on the educational context, we further analyzed sub-groups based on income level (low, medium, and high income) and regional size (rural areas, small and medium-sized cities, large cities, metropolitan cities). Results First, the analysis of the entire student sample indicated that the degree of EBS usage during COVID-19 had a significant impact on the reduction of private tutoring expenses. Second, the analysis by income group revealed that EBS usage contributed to the reduction of private tutoring expenses in all income groups, with a relatively larger effect in high-income groups. Third, the analysis by regional size confirmed the impact of EBS on reducing the expenses of private tutoring in small and medium-sized cities and metropolitan cities, while there was no statistically significant impact in rural areas and large cities. Conclusions This study empirically confirms that EBS contributed to reducing the expenditure on private tutoring in the unique context of COVID-19. This impact, however, varies across educational contexts, suggesting the need for differentiated approaches for different groups for effective policy formulation. Further research and policy efforts are needed to improve the effectiveness of EBS programs.