1. This study investigated the role of private tutoring in a context of high-stakes testing through Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis.
2. The findings reveal that while students are being oppressed in the washback of high-stakes testing under neoliberalism, shadow education further oppresses the students by intensifying the “banking” concept of education, teaching as the “authority”, emphasizing performativity and offering “false generosity”.
3. The study calls for research to take a closer look at the impact of shadow education on learners’ experiences in the current neoliberal era.
The article is overall reliable and trustworthy, as it provides an in-depth analysis of 18 Secondary Six (Grade 12) students’ reflections on their learning experiences in private tutoring in Hong Kong for one year. It also provides implications for potential educational change in contexts where education systems increasingly rely on accountability and selection through high-stakes testing. However, there are some potential biases and one-sided reporting that should be noted. For example, while the article does provide some counterarguments to its claims, it does not explore them fully or present both sides equally. Additionally, there is some promotional content throughout the article which could be seen as biased towards certain views or opinions. Furthermore, there is some missing evidence for certain claims made throughout the article which could weaken its reliability and trustworthiness. Finally, possible risks associated with shadow education are not noted or discussed in detail which could lead to an incomplete understanding of this phenomenon.