Closing the Gap

The gap between rich and poor continues to widen. We’ve heard and seen it in the news on a regular basis for many years. This remains true at a societal level and is also clearly demonstrated in the academic environment. In this short article we’ll talk about why this is happening within education and what options are possible for closing the gap (or at least reducing it).

I’ve been quite vocal in the past about the fact that there never has been and never will be, a level playing field. I still believe this to be true. The chasm between the uber rich, the upper middle classes and everyone else makes equality impossible. This is nothing new.

However, for a long time I’ve wondered if the gap should be anything like as big as it seems to be in the world of education. A key advantage of wealthier parents is choice. Choice of schools, universities, and the ability to choose to bring additional private tuition into the mix to ensure success.

I have personally benefitted from this investment for many years. Although increasingly, I felt the need to ensure that I provided options for the less well off. And these days that includes firmly middle class families who are earning a good wage, but paying enormous taxes and other bills. It’s become clear that relative hardship is increasingly across the board. What was once taken for granted is now often a luxury item. That includes tuition as it does holidays and other non-essential purchases.

So, what about the options I mentioned? Since the beginning of the first lockdown, I took my services online and delivered lessons via Zoom. I also took the opportunity to create online courses for pre-GCSE, GCSE, A Level Maths and Physics as well as 11+ Maths. These were designed to be delivered in a group format and enabled me to provide a personalised service and much reduced rate.

This meant that I was able to serve most families looking for an experienced and proven private tutor with a long track record of success. Not surprisingly, the courses have been extremely popular.

However, I didn’t stop there. I was, and continue to be, troubled by the knowledge that there are thousands of bright children out there whose families are simply not in a position to invest much, if anything at all, in accessing private tuition to give their children the boost they need to ‘get ahead’.

If you’ve followed me for a while, you’ll know that I believe education to be the foundation of social mobility.

With this in mind, I launched MST Foundation, a charity which operates a pay what you can (as well as pro bono) model for families that meet certain criteria. It’s fair to say it’s been an interesting time to start a charitable venture with various events around the world taking centre stage, however we’re already helping students with private tuition via our growing ranks of highly qualified tutors.

If you’re holding back from investigating private tuition based on costs, or you have what I believe to be a valid concern that many tutors available at extremely low rates doesn’t give you the level of tutor you’d like for your child, I’m very happy to discuss options with you.

When it comes to MST Foundation, it’s a charity with almost 100% of donations being directly invested in the provision of tuition. We rely on the generosity of individuals and companies to ensure we’re able to deliver each day and continue the great work we’ve started.

If you’d like to support us in our work, please visit our donation page (below) and I can assure you that all monies are wisely spent. Thank you in advance for your kind generosity.

If you have any questions or would like more information about my tuition, our charitable works and how you could get involved, simply email me at ma@mathematicsandsciencetuition.com.

Muhammad