NEARLY two years of closures due to the Covid-19 pandemic have cost tuition centres thousands of ringgit in revenue, the owners said.

While some have successfully moved their classes online and even attracted out-of-state students, others are barely making enough to make ends meet.

And although the Education Ministry intends to reopen schools next month in states in phases 3 and 4 of the national recovery plan, some tuition centres prefer to continue with virtual lessons.

Afifa Daud, owner of Pusat Tuisyen Efektif Minda Wawasan in Taman Permata in Hulu Klang, Selangor, had to quit her premises after suffering severe financial losses.

Afifa had tried to hold on to her seven-year-old centre for as long as possible by tapping into her savings, but eventually the rent proved to be too much.

“We were closed when the first movement control order (MCO) came into effect in March last year.

“Despite not being able to open, I kept the premises and continued paying rent until August when I could no longer hold on to it.

“I’ve lost about RM60,000 in savings just on rent for the past 17 months,” she said.

While there used to be 15 teachers and around 100 students, now there are four teachers and 20 students.

“After the first MCO, we lost about 20% of our students. Since then, we have been consistently losing around 5% every month.”

Though she moved her classes online, Afifa said most parents are not keen on sending their children for online tuition.

“We cannot have face-to-face classes and students do not want to study online. Parents said they will return once we reopen.

“But with the virus around, parents may not want to send their children to school let alone to tuition centres,” she added.

Online classes attracting students

Mohd Azman Mohd Nor, who has moved his tuition classes online, has been able to enrol students from out of state.

After more than 10 years, Azman who runs Pusat Tuisyen Alfa Pintar in Banting, Selangor decided to close his two centres due to the pandemic.

“We closed our centre in Olak Lempit, Banting, in 2020, and in June this year we closed down the other centre in Sungai Mas, also in Banting,” he told The Malaysian Insight.

“I also sold the air-conditioning units. I’m now looking to sell the tables and chairs as well.”

Azman opened Pusat Tuisyen Alfa Pintar in 2009. At its peak, he said he had 400 students in both centres and made around RM15,000 a month pre-pandemic.

“In 2020, we didn’t do many online classes thinking we could sustain ourselves. Starting this year we have stepped up on our marketing and now have about 200 students nationwide.”

Since classes were moved online, Azman said his students now are not limited to those living in Banting. He now has students in Sabah, Sarawak and the east coast.

He used to hire seven teachers but now Azman does all the teaching.

“It is just me teaching now. Every now and then my wife will help out,” he said, adding that other teachers were not willing to invest in the gadgets necessary for online learning.

While the Education Ministry has announced that schools will start next month, Azman said he has no plans to reopen his tuition centres.

“The SOPs that are imposed on us are like those applied in schools. We don’t have enough manpower for that.

“We will also have to sanitise the centre regularly and limit the number of students in class. All these incur costs and we would have to hike up the fees, which might not be affordable for many parents. So for safety’s sake and to minimise cost, I will continue with online lessons.”

Face-to-face lessons

Shameena Nathan, a freelance tutor who teaches in the Klang Valley, said she has been struggling to retain students since the epidemic broke out last year.

Shameena, who has taught for 15 years, said most parents are not keen on online tuition classes for their children.

“It’s been tough. (I have) fewer students. Most of my younger students I lost because the parents were not keen on online classes.

“My online classes are mainly for secondary students as they can concentrate and understand better,” she said.

Before Covid-19 struck, Nathan said she had 10 to 15 students. This has dropped to five students now.

Shameena, who travels to the homes of her students to teach, said demand for her services is gradually returning as more people become vaccinated.

“Only now as more people are getting vaccinated are parents keen on face-to-face classes. Hopefully the trend continues.”

She added that she has lost about half of her income due to the health crisis. – September 10, 2021.