History Main / CramSchool

The role of these schools is a matter of controversy. Many teachers oppose them on the basis that they undermine the work and dedication of regular teachers. Their opponents argue that if teachers were doing as good a job as they should be, there would be no need for cram schools. Some say that expensive cram schools [[BribingYourWayToVictory unfairly benefit children of the rich]] in what's supposed to be an evaluation of skill; others retort that the same could be said of any tutor and that parents have the right to invest in their kids. [[JustForFun/TelevisionIsTryingToKillUs Cram schools can also be dangerous to students' health, as they risk overwork and classes are often very early in the morning or late at night to fit around the regular school schedule]].

The prevalence of cram schools varies around the world, but they're most prevalent in East Asia, where the EducationMama is a common phenomenon and university entrance exams are so important that they can basically make or break a teen's future. As such, it's a common {{Anime trope|s}} -- a particular twist is for [[TheSmartGuy the smart kid]] to go to cram school despite not needing it or still being in grade school, [[NerdsLoveToughSchoolwork just because they enjoy it]].

* ''Series/MysteryScienceTheater3000'' would reference cram schools as a RunningGag when they saw a Japanese film. In the ''Film/InvasionOfTheNeptuneMen episode, they even refer to some children hanging out in the woods as "Cram Camp".

* In UsefulNotes/HongKong, cram schools are known as "tutorial schools". An interesting aspect of these schools is that [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cram_schools_in_Hong_Kong#Tutor_profiles some teachers are promoted like celebrities]]: the school will hire stylists to doll them up, hold a photoshoot, and then create advertisements that bill the teachers with [[MundaneMadeAwesome cool titles like "King of Tutors", "Godfather of Science" and "Queen of English"]].

* In Brazil, they are known as the ''cursinhos'' ("little courses"), which are part-time (although full-time schools are not uncommon) preparation for the ''vestibulares'' (entrance exams for specific universities) or the ENEM (National High School Exam, for any university). These courses are extremely important because public education in Brazil is completely free and has the best-rated colleges. Thus, the ''cursinhos'' are essential to enter more contested programs such as medicine or law. This has also exacerbated social inequality, since the ''cursinhos'' are only available for middle or high-class students, who then have a better chance of going to college for free, while lower-class people are stuck with only a public school education and then expensive private colleges.

The role of these schools is a matter of controversy. Many teachers oppose them on the basis that they undermine the work and dedication of regular teachers. Their opponents argue that if teachers were doing as good a job as they should be, there would be no need for cram schools. Some say that expensive cram schools [[BribingYourWayToVictory unfairly benefit children of the rich]] in what's supposed to be an evaluation of skill; others retort that the same could be said of any tutor and that parents have the right to invest in their kids. [[JustForFun/TelevisionIsTryingToKillUs Cram schools can also be dangerous to students' health, as they risk overwork and classes are often very early in the morning or late at night to fit them around the regular school schedule]].

The prevalence of cram schools varies around the world, but they're most prevalent in East Asia, where the EducationMama is a common phenomenon and university entrance exams are so important that they can basically make or break a teenager's future. As such, it's a common {{Anime trope|s}} -- a particular twist is for [[TheSmartGuy the smart kid]] to go to cram school despite not needing it or still being in grade school, [[NerdsLoveToughSchoolwork just because they enjoy it]].

* ''Manga/OnePunchMan'': In extra materials it's revealed that [[KidHero Child Emperor]], aside from attending normal school despite being a ChildProdigy, also attends Cram School... ''as a teacher''.
* ''Manga/{{Erased}}'': Aya Nakanishi, one of the 1988 victims, attended an evening cram school on top of her existing private school schedule and piano lessons, isolating her from her peers and making her an easy target for the killer. [[spoiler:Saving her, Satoru deduces, involves diverting her from her usual routine so the killer doesn't have an opportunity to kidnap her on her nighttime walk back home.]]

* ''Film/TheTaiwanOyster'' is about two Americans teaching English in Taiwanese cram schools and private kindergartens while drinking a lot of beer, based on the director's own experiences doing the same (maybe not the beer part?).

* The ''Literature/HarryPotter'' books often refer to the [[AchievementTestOfDestiny OWL and NEWT exams]] that WizardingSchool students must take in their fifth and seventh years, respectively. Many future career opportunities are explicitly open only to those with certain NEWT scores. In ''[[Literature/HarryPotterAndTheOrderOfThePhoenix Order of the Phoenix]]'', we see that although there aren't any formal cram schools, the students are basically making their own, with one student bragging that he's studying ''eight hours'' a day (on top of actual classes) and another having a nervous breakdown and being sent to the hospital right before exams. Harry has his own episode when he falls off his chair screaming during an exam, and the proctor assumes he's just stressed out about it, but he's actually receiving a painful remote MindProbe.

* ''[[https://store.steampowered.com/app/1146660/Solar_Cram_School/ Solar Cram School]]'' is a [[AnEntrepreneurIsYou business simulation game]] where you run a cram school company, trying to balance the books while recruiting skilled teachers and setting your students up for success. For a game about education, however, the English translation is very poor, so Chinese proficiency is recommended.

Cram schools tend to be different around the world depending on how different societies see education and how their university entrance requirements work. Some countries have interesting quirks:

* In UsefulNotes/SouthKorea, cram schools are known as ''hagwon''. South Korea is known for having one of the absolute most competitive university entrance exams in the world, and the cram schools are accordingly brutal, including some that use fines or corporal punishment to motivate students. The government has had to impose a strict 10pm closing time, and the police patrol at night to look for schools flouting the curfew. However, the term hagwon can be used for any type of private supplementary school, including non-competitive ones that merely teach subjects not covered/focused on by public schools. (Non-competitive compared to the exam hagwon, anyways...)

** On the other end, high school students in China don't go to cram schools. As high school funding is directly proportionate to college admission rates and the prestige of the colleges the students get into, there's a strong incentive for the high school to double as the cram school. The average Chinese high school student's day is [[TrainingFromHell fourteen hours long]], much of it in mandatory study halls.

* UsefulNotes/{{France}} has preparatory classes inside high schools, a course of two years to prepare to various entrance examinations to the grandes écoles[[note]]engineering schools, business school and other specialised schools[[/note]]. To be accepted, teachers ask for a high academic level and the ability to bear a high workload. The final year can be repeated once if no interesting school is available.
* In Brazil, they are known as the ''cursinhos'' ("little courses"), which are part-time (although full-time schools are not uncommon) for the ''vestibulares'' (Entrance exams for specific universities) or the ENEM (National High School Exam, for any university). These courses are extremly important because public education in Brazil is completly free and have the best-rated colleges. Thus, the ''cursinhos'' are essential to enter more disputed programs such as medicine or law. This has also exacerbated social inequality, since the ''cursinhos'' are only available for middle or high-class students, who enter in public colleges and don't have to pay tuition, while lower-class people who don't have conditions to study or are in poor public schools can only enter in expensive private colleges.

* In Greece, attending cram schools is practically ''expected'', and not just for exam years. The striking majority of children learn English and a second foreign language in cram schools even though they are obligatory public school subjects, while starting in high school (or even middle school) they start taking classes in other high-importance or difficulty subjects. Those are always afternoon or Saturday classes, and depending on the system of each cram school, may help the students complete their homework or assign new homework and explain concepts explained in class in a more specific manner (it should be noted that a public school classroom contains around 30 students, while it's rare to find a cram school class with more than 10). As with other real life examples, admittance to university is entirely dependent on a point system which depends on the score you get in a country-wide exam. It's basically a competition for extremely limited spots. Therefore it's near impossible to get into the uni of your choice without attending cram school (good thing you get infinite tries). The public education system itself plays a huge part in the prevalence of cram schools - it is illegal for public school teachers to do private tutoring, and due to really low hiring rates, many newly graduated teachers get their start at cram schools.