Addressing marginalization in Ethiopian education: relationship between language transition, social, economical, physical and personal barriers with student performance and policy

Group Submission Type: Formal Panel Session

Proposal

Ethiopia’s Education Sector Development Plan (EDSP, 2015) cites two main goals: (1) to improve access to quality primary education in order to make sure that all children, youth and adults acquire the competencies, skills and values that enable them to participate fully in the development of Ethiopia; and (2) to sustain equitable access to quality secondary education services as the basis and bridge to the demand of the economy for middle- and higher-level human resources.

In pursuit of these goals, Ethiopia’s Ministry of Education has also placed great importance on alleviating multiple barriers that face children in accessing education: the transition between mother tongue and English and a myriad of social, emotional, economical and political barriers.

When it comes to language, the national education language policy of Ethiopia allows regions to make a decision as to when to start English as a Medium of Instruction. Presently, the national policy on language of instruction promotes the acquisition of English literacy for Ethiopian children based on a strong foundation of reading skills in mother tongue. To be successful in the education system that promotes proficiency in at least both languages, students take English as a subject starting from Grade 1 while instruction is in mother tongue. In order for the transition to English to be successful, resources such as well-trained teachers, curricular support and appropriate materials in mother tongue and English at all grades (EDSP, 2015) are required. In addition, it is critical that there is enough evidence upon which this complex transition decision is made, in order to increase likelihood of its success.

Language presents one of many barriers to education in Ethiopia. Children who are marginalized face a compounding effect of two or more barriers. For example, in one zone of the Southern Nations Nationalities and Peoples Region (SNNPR), girls transitioning from lower primary to upper secondary have high dropout rates because girls do not have adequate basic needs while menstruating and miss 5 or more days per month of school, have low self-esteem, have low expectations for schooling from parents and communities, and when they do come to school, are taught by teachers who are not equipped to manage students with varied needs. Generally, high drop-out rates related to poverty, school distance, and early marriage for girls further exacerbate the low levels of adult education and literacy in the community. As a result, completion rates, on average, are low – two-thirds of students who leave grade 4 continue to complete grade 5; one-half of students who complete grade 7 continue on to complete grade 8. Once students enter secondary school, the completion rates fall significantly lower at one-third of students even continuing into secondary. Transforming practices at the local level require keen alignment with policy and practices at the zone and local levels, presenting yet an additional barrier to students.

Using experiences and data from several regions of Ethiopia, the panelists will explore trends from a policy and structural perspective, a linguistic perspective and a longitudinal perspective.
Together, these presentations will explore the complex web of barriers that affect Ethiopian students’ ability to “acquire the competencies, skills and values that enable them to participate fully in the development of Ethiopia” (EDSP, 2015). Panelists will explore trends in Ethiopian student outcomes to unpack the relationships between language transition, social and economic factors and student literacy and numeracy performance, provide new evidence on the thresholds that can support better biliteracy acquisition, and explore different ways that organisations have engaged and worked with policy makers to support evidence-informed educational policy-making. By the end of the presentation, attendees will gain an understanding of the evidence and efforts to address various barriers to education in Ethiopia and explore strategies currently being implemented to address these challenges.

Panelists include presenters from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the United Kingdom Department for International Development (DFID), American Institutes for Research (AIR), Link Community Development (Link) and School-to-School International (STS). USAID in partnership with AIR is currently implementing the Reading for Ethiopia’s Achievement Developed Monitoring &Evaluation (READ M&E) project; DFID in partnership with LINK and STS is currently implementing the Supporting Transition of Adolescent Girls through Enhancing Systems (STAGES)project.

Sub Unit

• General Pool

Individual Presentations

• Girls Education Challenge Fund (GEC) for improving outcomes for marginalized girls - Amy Parker, Relief International

• Literacy and education in mutli-lingual contexts: Impacts on learning - Pooja Reddy Nakamura, American Institutes for Research; Juan Bonilla, American Institutes for Research

• Exploring the compounding influence of marginalization on outcomes for girls and policy in STAGES primary and secondary schools - Hetal Thukral, School-to-School International; Samantha Ross, Link Community Development International; Randy Tarnowski, STS International

• Mechanisms of adopting and reformulating comprehensive sexuality education policy in Ethiopia - Marielle L.J. Le Mat, University of Amsterdam; Hulya Kosar Altinyelken, University of Amsterdam; Henny M.W. Bos, University of Amsterdam; Monique L.L. Volman, University of Amsterdam

Discussant

• Addis Yigzaw, US Agency for International Development