Rethinking Education In Ethiopia

Only 20 per cent of the school-age population have access to primary education. Yet the majority of school leavers have few employment opportunities. The current and planned expansion of the formal education sector cannot be defended either on development or moral grounds since formal educational cannot fulfil the educational and developmental needs of the great majority of the population. This study attempts to explore an alternative strategy as regards expansion of literacy and the fulfilment of educational and developmental needs. This study argues that the strategy of non-formal education is in both cases a far better alternative.

This book attempts to assess the impacts of Haile Selassie's educational policy on Ethiopia's educated elite. This inquiry was inspired by the fact that the educated Ethiopian elite has played a negative role during and since the overthrow of Haile Selassie's regime. The further political and economic stagnation is also tied to the policies adopted by the educated elites. The author questions whether the reliance on the Westerns curriculums and teaching methods brought to the spread of the Marxist ideas in Ethiopia. Another question is about abandoning native Ethiopian educational legacy in education during the period in question.

This book discusses reforms that should be undertaken in secondary education to support Ethiopia s transition from a low- to middle-income economy. The most critical reform identified is the introduction of a flexible curriculum that serves the needs of all students, including those who may not pursue higher education.

The main focus of the study is the deepening crisis of the Ethiopian education system. This study reconstructs the growth of the crisis of the sector during the last four decades. It then discusses the implications of the crisis in terms of communication breakdown; absence of analytical capacity at system level; the fragmentation of society; loss of political legitimacy and perpetuation of authoritarian power. Although the education sector has greatly expanded its impact on poverty alleviation has so far been insignificant. The poverty landscape has changed to the worse during the last fifty years. This is largely due to the fact that the Ethiopian education system is based on false premises. At the center of the crisis is the use of English as medium of instruction. The proficiency in English is so low that its continued use as a medium of instruction can only lead to the collapse of the education system. The study argues that it is only through language (readily understood and practiced) that collective life and the world can be interpreted in an integrated manner. The replacement of English by Ethiopian languages all the way from the primary to tertiary levels is one of the factors that could strengthen the survival potential of the Ethiopian political community. The study is relevant for policy makers and students of development studies on the role of education in social change in Africa south of the Sahara.