Bahir Dar University

Course: Language Teaching and Teacher Development (TEFL 702)

Review of “Ethiopian Education and Training Policy and Its

Implementations”

By: Megbaru Motbaynor

Zelalem Ayalew

Submitted to: Professor Abiy Yigzaw

Dr. Kassie Shiferie (Associate Professor)

June, 2022
Bahir Dar, Ethiopia
 The Process of Framing the Policy

 Problems of both access and quality of the previous

educational system led to framing the policy.
 Formulation of the new policy draft (1993): transparent,
participatory, and democratic
 22 government institutions and 62 experts from Addis
Ababa University involved
 elementary to high school teachers of Addis Ababa
attended discussions for criticism on the drafted policy.
Cont’d….

 Topics for discussion included

1) Education in Ethiopia in the past and the present,

2) The teaching profession and the condition of teachers,
3) Educational management and organization,
4) General conception of the draft educational policy.

 Discussion forums contributed to the improvement of the

policy
 Problems of the Old Education System

 The old system was criticized for the following long standing
problems:
 limited access (20% of school age children)
 inequitable accessibility (regions, genders, rural/urban areas)
 problem of Efficiency (high dropouts and repeaters)
 lack of quality and relevance (due to copied system)
 undemocratic content (glorifying one group and denying
others’ ethnic and gender equality)
 The New Policy and its Strategies

To produce educated citizens, the policy devised various

strategies:
 expanding educational opportunity and ensuring its equity
 linking education and training (allowing students to qualify to
be employed in the field of their training or to create their
own jobs), after grade 10 – vocational training
 democratization of the administration and content of
education
 provision of quality and relevant educational services
 Measures Taken to Change the Curriculum

 First, a new educational curriculum developed in two

branches:
 General education: all aspects of learning, then
preparing students to pursue in specialized education
 Vocational education: helps students to engage in
vocational skills
 Issues like civic education, medium of instruction

and girls’ education are considered

Cont’d…

 Second, training and career development of teachers:

 strengthening and enriching teacher training
institutions to provide summer, evening and distance
education beyond the regular program
 developing career structure: helps to differentiate
capable and competent teachers and to reward them;
 It also helps to discard the incompetent and unethical
teachers.
 Cont’d…

 In short, career structure enables to identify the

deserving teachers from the non-deserving ones.
 Third, organizational structure of education:
responsibilities and duties are shared among Federal,
Regional, Zonal, Woreda, and Kebele levels
 Hence, possible to make the educational system
democratic, de-centralized and coordinated.
Five Year Education Sector Development Program (1996-2001)

 Prepared to execute policy recommendations and directions.

It focuses on:
 the building of primary to higher education level
 the supply of textbooks and other educational material;
 the training of teachers, etc
 Regions given the autonomy to design their programs based on
their specific needs and the plan of the federal level

 Sources of finance: government organizations, donor and loan-

granting organizations, the larger society and NGOs.
 Educational Finance

 resource available and the method of financing education

determine:
 extent of access for education,
 the type of education given,
 the level and quality of education, and
 the overall management of education
 private investors cooperating with the government to expand
learning institutions
 reducing educational wastage every year i.e. repeaters and
dropouts…..
 Measures Taken to Improve the Quality of Education

 Quality education is a complex matter, and it has varied

features:
 its relationship to, or connection with the society’s cultural,
economic, and political realities and activities.

e.g. using mother tongue, equitable distribution of

educational services
 its close dependence on the resources of the country and
society or economic development (e.g. ratio)
Cont’d…

 Minimum criteria and requirements:

1) The existence of professionally competent and ethically-

minded teachers in the system

2) The existence of an efficient management of education

3) A student-centered and equitable curriculum which has a high

standard relevant to the society

4) The supply of necessary educational materials and equipment

Cont’d…

 Measures taken for quality of education (in the past):

 text book and teacher- student ratio improved
 Libraries and laboratories are improved
 New vocational schools and institutions are upgraded
 Supplementary lessons were given via Tv and radio (in the
area where there are shortage of teachers)
 Coverage/educational expansion/ was emphasized than quality
e.g. China & Korea
 Expansion of Equitable Educational Opportunities

 Measures Taken to Expand Equitable Educational

Opportunities:
 opening of kindergartens in collaboration with private sectors
and religions
 expansion of primary education-priority is given: e.g. Asia and
Latin America to:
• enhance economic dev’t, health, conflict resolving
mechanisms, acceptance and application of technologies-
emphasis was given on rural
 construction of another boarding school e.g. in Afar
 provision of Special Education with trained teachers and
manuals
 participation of girls
 Cont’d…
 Secondary schools are expanded
 Technical and Vocational Education and Training were given special
attention
Agricultural Training
 Theoretical and practical training to learn modern methods of production
was planned
 Junior trainings (grade 7-10 in plant and animal science- 6 months
training) and medium trainings (completed 10 and those who are
expected to plan and manage modern farms/enterprises ) were
established.
Commercial and Industrial Training
 Junior level- (4-6 grade for 6 months) e.g. home economics, commerce,
handcraft, etc.
 Medium- (10 grade- 1-2 years - to produce adequately trained mid-level
skilled manpower for various fields and to launch private enterprises)
 Cont’d…

 Regarding Higher Education

 increased in number
 seven junior Teacher Training Colleges have been opened in various
regions.
 Female enrolment in higher education is given special
encouragement such as tutorial services, assertiveness training,
priority access to books etc.
 parallel methods like distance education, on-the job training etc.
have been adopted in the universities.
 A nation-wide ‘Quality Assurance Agency’ was set up
 Future Considerations and Measures
1) Expansion of Educational Services at All Levels
 Changes are brought, but insufficient, so the following tasks and measures
have to be given serious attention:
 The coverage for primary education should be 100% (57.4% by that time)
 the target is to make all citizens complete primary school in 20 years
 mobile schools will be set up especially in pastoral areas (1-4)
 quality is emphasized so that teaching aids, especially textbooks,
reference
materials, and science kits shall be supplied in greater quantity and their
utilization shall be improved.
 experience sharing in clusters
 promotions for good and weeding of the weak will be focused
 Vocational education will focus on agriculture related activities and aim at
transforming the lives
 Cont’d…

 English language, native speakers of English will teach , and short

upgrading courses will be offered.
 Educational inputs will be greatly supplied and distributed
 To determine the adequacy and level of training, standardization
and certification systems will be set up.
 The university curriculum as well as the learning- teaching
process will be reviewed and improved
 The autonomy of universities and teachers will be respected
 conducive conditions will be set up in the universities
 Cont’d…

2) Developing of Good Citizenship

 To have the capacity to solve problems

3) Improving Internal Efficiency (e.g. wastage)

4) Adjusting the Organization of Education

 There should be decentralization and institutions will be professional,
democratic and efficient.
 the educational management should be efficient and equitable at the
Federal, Regional, Zonal, and Woreda levels.
 a system of educational finance, administration, and leadership will
be introduced that will involve the community as a major stakeholder
 Comments on the Policy and Its Implementation
 It takes much money and many years to implement
 It is difficult to persuade the larger society
 The medium of instruction is debatable
 Because of its educational and economic advantages, the self-
contained classroom management has been chosen as the most
effective method, but objected b/s:
boring for children
much load for teachers
vacuumed class
 Continuous assessment is applied since it permits automatic
promotion, and reduces class repetition and school interruption
which are sources of inefficiency
 Cont’d…

 Placement of Students in Higher Education (natural or social

sciences stream in the first year), and after that they are placed in
different disciplines. It was opposed:

interest

admission of private candidates for medicine

admission of more females than males

 Free Education for All (but cost-sharing in universities)
 Cont’d…

The Comparison of Basic Differences between the present Education and

Training Policy and the Education Sector Review
Education Sector Review/1973 New Education & Training Policy
1) Aims to use education in isolation aims to use education as an instrument for
solving the country's social and economic
predicament
2) is not transparent and participatory is transparent and participatory
3) Primary education was limited to the first it does not put a limit on the society's
four grades (writing & reading) educational opportunity
4) less attention for secondary and higher more attention for secondary and higher
education education
5) it did not provide for special vocational Vocational trainings are emphasized
training as anyone could teach practically
6) The educational finance is highly loaded to The financed is moderately run by the gov’t
the community/either in labor or cash
7) Salary was lowered
 Our Evaluation

Strong Sides Weak Sides

 Enhanced educational opportunities The issue of transparency and inclusiveness
in drafting the policy is questioned
 Its focus on various fields like The intake and output of universities seems
agriculture, teacher training, health, hotel, opposite
construction
 The provision of academic professions The qualified teachers in sufficient quantity
and vocational training is not guaranteed
Teachers’ living conditions and their
professional needs are not met
The educational management system seems
politicized
The Quality Assurance Agency is more
theoretical
Adoption may not work for Ethiopia
Technological advancement like Tv, Radio
 Suggestions

 Contextualized & achievable

 Political-free education
 Comprehensive discussions with the inclusion of representative
experts
 the method should highly be emphasized as it is central issue to
quality education
 Strong and on-going monitoring system
 Cont’d…
Points for Discussion
 Medium of instruction
 Self-contained
 10 + 3
 Free promotion
 Cost-sharing
 Parallel education systems e.g. Distance education
 Effect of the politics
The End!