Rijkhoek Renee 10673814 Masterscriptie Owk 30-04-2016

Active Learning in Ethiopia
Implementation in the Pedagogical, Social and Cultural

Context of Primary Education
Renée Rijkhoek
April 2016
Supervisor: Dr. Hülya Kosar Altinyelken

The Implementation of Active Learning in Ethiopia
Voor Papa.
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Acknowledgements
I want to thank all the people who were involved in the process of writing this thesis. First of all I
want to thank the Development Expertise Center (DEC) Ethiopia for their corporation in and
facilitation of this research. My special appreciations are for Nura Sirna. For his unconditional effort
in the process of this research as a translator, critical friend, guider, protector and most of all as a
friend who made the time of data collection a very interesting and pleasant time in Jimma and
Bedele. I also want to thank all the involved teachers and principals from the primary schools of
Jimma and Bedele which have shared their experiences with active learning so openly. Finally, I want
to thank the involved teachers of the TTC Jimma for their time, coffees, lunches, information and
humor during the data collection process of this research.
I am very thankful to my supervisor Dr. Hülya Kosar Altinyelken for all her effort and support
in the entire process of writing this thesis. Her very professional view on the topic and her experience
in doing research in this, sometimes challenging, field was very inspiring to me. Finally, I want to
thank her for her always positive attitude.
I am also grateful to my Ethiopian, Belgium, Russian and American friends in Jimma who
made my stay in Ethiopia and the process of data collection to an unforgettable and warm time. I
want to thank them for taking me out for the necessary mango juices and other unforgettable
moments. Last but not least, I want to thank my friends and family for their support in doing this
research in Ethiopia.
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Abstract
Based on qualitative research, this study seeks to examine how active learning is understood and
implemented in Ethiopian primary education, and from the perspective of local actors, to what
extent active learning is appropriate for the social- and cultural context of Ethiopia. The research has
been carried out in eleven different primary schools and in one TTC in south-west Ethiopia. In this
research, primary school teachers (n=48), students (n=4), directors (n=5) and TTC-teachers (n=8)
were involved. The research shows that teachers are facing several challenges with the
implementation of active learning. Besides practical problems like class size, time and availability of
educational materials, also the continuity of training and social and cultural rules, which are deeply
rooted in the Ethiopian society, hinder the implementation of active learning. Teachers are very
enthusiastic about the implementation of active learning, but due to these challenges it is poorly
implemented. This study concludes that not only the challenges are causing the poor
implementation. A discrepancy is also observed between what teachers say they implement and
what they actually do during the lessons. The ‘gap’ between the enthusiasm of the teachers and the
poor implementation could be explained by fact that the program is dependent on funding and
therefore teachers picture the reality more positive than they actually find. The second conclusion is
that active learning policy is not appropriate in its current form for the Ethiopian primary education.
It is based on the social and cultural values of the context where it has been designed, the ‘Western’
countries as TTC-teachers named it. It is based on an ‘extrovert’ individualistic society which
contradicts with the Ethiopian where children are raised by the idea that they cannot speak up
towards grown-ups and giving feedback or contradicting people is perceived as impolite. A
transformation into a more social-cultural sensitive policy is needed whereby local indigenous
knowledge is used as starting point.
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1. Index
Acknowledgements ...................................................................................................................... 3
Abstract ....................................................................................................................................... 4
1. Index .................................................................................................................................... 5
2. Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 8
2.1 Aim and Relevance .................................................................................................................. 8
2.2 Problem Statement ................................................................................................................. 9
2.3 Social and Scientific Relevance.............................................................................................. 10
2.4 Research Question ................................................................................................................ 11
2.5 Research Outline ................................................................................................................... 11
3. Theoretical Framework ....................................................................................................... 13
3.1 Active Learning and Learner-Centred Education .................................................................. 13
3.2 Role of the Teachers and Students ....................................................................................... 16
3.3 International Policy and the Social Context of Sub-Sahara Africa......................................... 17
3.3.1 The Social Context of Sub-Sahara Africa and the aim of International Organizations .. 17
3.3.2 Implementation Challenges .......................................................................................... 19
3.3.2.1 Teachers and the Context ......................................................................................... 19
3.3.2.2 The Importance of the Community in the Implementation Process ........................ 20
4. Contextual Background ....................................................................................................... 22
4.1 Country profile of Ethiopia .................................................................................................... 22
4.2 Education in Ethiopia............................................................................................................. 23
4.2.1 Short history .................................................................................................................. 23
4.2.2 Primary Education Nowadays........................................................................................ 24
4.3 Implementation of Active Learning in Ethiopian Education ................................................. 26
4.3.1 The Need of Educational Reform and Teacher Training ............................................... 26
4.3.2 Students and Active Learning ........................................................................................ 28
4.4 Research location .................................................................................................................. 29
4.5 Development Expertise Centre ............................................................................................. 30
5. Methodology ...................................................................................................................... 31
5.1 Research Methods................................................................................................................. 31
5.1.1 Sample ........................................................................................................................... 31
5.1.2 Interviews ...................................................................................................................... 32
5.1.2.1 Group 1 ...................................................................................................................... 32
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5.1.2.2 Group 2 ...................................................................................................................... 34

5.1.2.3 Group 3 ...................................................................................................................... 35
5.1.3 Classroom observations ................................................................................................ 35
5.1.4 Curriculum analysis ....................................................................................................... 37
5.2 Data Analysis ......................................................................................................................... 37
5.3 Epistemological Position and Ethical Considerations ............................................................ 38
5.4 Limitations of the Study ........................................................................................................ 39
6. Diverse Views on Active Learning ........................................................................................ 41
6.1 Views on Active Learning ...................................................................................................... 41
6.1.1 Importance of Active Learning for Further Developments in Ethiopia ......................... 41
6.1.2 Definitions by Teachers and Directors .......................................................................... 41
6.1.3 Definitions of Active Learning by TTC-teachers ............................................................ 43
6.1.4 Definitions by Students ................................................................................................. 44
7. Outcomes ........................................................................................................................... 45
7.1.1 Teachers ........................................................................................................................ 45
7.1.2 TTC-Teachers ................................................................................................................. 46
7.1.3 Directors ........................................................................................................................ 46
8. Implementation of Active Learning in Ethiopian Classrooms................................................. 48
8.1 Implementation Profiles ........................................................................................................ 48
8.1.1 Strategies of Implementation........................................................................................ 48
8.1.1.1 Implementation after Teacher Training .................................................................... 48
8.1.1.2 Through Community Involvement ............................................................................ 52
8.1.1.3 Through the Curriculum ............................................................................................ 53
8.2 Implementation Challenges .................................................................................................. 54
8.2.1 Materials........................................................................................................................ 54
8.2.2 Class size and Age .......................................................................................................... 55
8.2.3 Culture and Background ................................................................................................ 57
8.2.4 Motivation and Knowledge of Teachers ....................................................................... 58
8.2.5 Training and Continuity ................................................................................................. 59
8.3 Cultural Relevance of Active Learning ................................................................................... 59
9. Conclusion .......................................................................................................................... 61
9.1 Main Findings ........................................................................................................................ 61
9.2 Recommendations ................................................................................................................ 65
9.2.1 Reconsideration of the Active Learning Policy .............................................................. 65
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9.2.2 Teacher Training ............................................................................................................ 66

9.2.3 Ownership over the Policy ............................................................................................ 67
9.3 Further Research ................................................................................................................... 67
10. References ...................................................................................................................... 69
Apendix ..................................................................................................................................... 74
Apendix 1: Interviews ........................................................................................................................ 74
Apendix 2: BEQUIP Structured Observation Scheme ........................................................................ 82
Apendix 3: Semi-structured observation questions .......................................................................... 84
Appendix 4: Structured curriculum observation form ...................................................................... 85
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2. Introduction
2.1 Aim and Relevance
Anno 2016 education is not a matter of national discourse anymore but a case of global policy
transfers. In the past decades, many sub-Saharan countries have been involved in educational
reforms from traditional teacher-centred education into learner-centred approaches of education.
Different causes were underlying for the transformation; the rise of knowledge based economies in
sub-Saharan countries, open markets and globalisation whereby new pedagogical ideas travelled
from the Western world towards sub-Saharan Africa (Preece, 2013). The rapid changes of economies
still continue and this requires, according to Verspoor (2008), extended knowledge and skills of
(future) employees. It requires the ability of practical application of knowledge, rather than
memorizing facts as was the case in traditional teaching methods. Therefore, learner-centred
approaches of education were and are implemented in the educational systems of sub-Saharan
countries (Altinyelken, 2010; Serbessa, 2006).
Chisholm & Leyendecker (2008) and Preece (2013) argue that the implementation of learner-
centred approaches in education was with the intention to give these countries prospect on
democratisation, liberalisation and economic growth, with an overarching goal to make them more
accessible for the world market. Educational approaches originated in the Western world were
implemented in sub-Saharan Africa as being the key towards the democratisation and liberalisation
by local governments and (Western) aid organisations. In practice this transformation in educational
systems has many unintended effects and partly or does not reach the intended purpose of the
implementation, because it is not aligned with the local cultures of sub-Sahara Africa (Chisholm &
Leyendecker, 2008; Preece, 2013).
This also applies in the case of Ethiopia where active learning is implemented to improve the
quality of education and to reach a more learner-centred educational system. Teachers experience
different challenges which hinder the implementation of it. Lack of knowledge and experience of
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teachers about active learning, limited training, lack of educational materials, class size and budget
are mainly mentioned. However, besides practical challenges, there is also a cultural aspect which
has influence on the implementation of active learning. Active learning is based on discussion and
interaction between students amongst each other and with teachers to build knowledge
constructions. In the Ethiopian culture, from a student perspective, it is impolite to discuss with and
talk to grown-ups. This makes the implementation of active learning challenging, because students
refuse to participate in lessons. For this reason and due to the practical challenges, teachers often
lapse back into traditional teaching methods (Altinyelken, 2010; Preece, 2013; Serbessa, 2006).
Chisholm & Leyendecker (2008) argue in their study about curriculum reform in sub-Sahara
Africa after the 1990s that there is a lot more research needed about local responses and extent of
receptiveness and acceptance towards the implementation of these global educational policies
(p. 203). Moreover, the specific case of Ethiopia is researched by few. This research focuses on the
local responses, challenges and, cultural and social receptiveness towards active learning in primary
education. It investigates the implementation of active learning and its suitability for the Ethiopian
primary education from a bottom-up approach. It focuses not only on teachers and directors of
primary schools but also on students, teacher trainers, teacher trainers from NGO’s and other
relevant stakeholders.
2.2 Problem Statement
Since the 1990’s learner-centred education travelled the world from developed countries towards
developing countries. Active learning is a learner-centred approach of education whereby students
are actively involved in the lesson and subject matter. They learn through discussions with the
teacher and peers, collaboration and presentations. The aim of active learning is to give students
responsibility about their own learning process and, therefore, create flexible, creative and proactive
thinkers (Campione, Shapiro & Brown, 1994; Prince, 2004). Numerous researches have been
presented on the challenges of the implementation of active learning in sub-Sahara Africa. Preece
(2013) and Tabulawa (2003) argue that active learning is often implemented without or with limited
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research on the context of implementation. This research focuses on the local pedagogic, social and
cultural context of Ethiopia where active learning is implemented.
In Ethiopia active learning is widely implemented by many but is understood by few, as
Serbessa (2006) argues, despite the (sometimes intensive) training teachers receive. Teachers in
Ethiopia are facing fundamental and controversial challenges which are related to deeply rooted
cultural and social traditions when they implement active learning, besides different practical
problems (Chisholm & Leyendecker, 2008). Tabulawa (2003) argues that implementation problems
are caused by a lack of research by those who implement active learning in local contexts of
developing countries which are mostly driven by the funding of external organisations. Those
challenges can be overcome by research and involvement of local expertise and experience in the
designing or reshaping of educational policy. This study tries to research this local expertise and
experience to investigate if active learning is a suitable approach for the Ethiopian primary
education.
2.3 Social and Scientific Relevance
Active learning and other approaches of learner-centred education have been widely implemented in
developing countries to improve educational quality. Educational policies were implemented one on
one from the context of a developed country, or Western donor-countries, into the context of a
developing country (Altinyelken 2010; Chisholm & Leyendecker, 2008; Preece 2013). Often the
choice of the implemented educational policy is based on the preference of those donor-countries
(Steiner-Kahmsi, 2011). Preece (2013) argues that those ‘Global North policies’ disseminate core
values of which are rooted in the societies of the donor-countries rather than the values of the
countries of implementation. African societies are mostly collective orientated whereas the donor-
countries are mostly individually orientated. The latter is reflected in the Ethiopian society but not in
the active learning policy. This causes challenges and problems in the implementation process,
because of a lack of alignment with the local culture and society (Preece, 2013). The findings of this
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research are a call for a reconsideration of the active learning policy implemented in Ethiopian
primary education and the suitability for the Ethiopian context.
2.4 Research Question
Quality education and policy evolves from the key principles of its own society. If this is not the case,
problems and challenges on local contexts occurs which could have great influence on the quality of
education. This study tries to understand which cultural-, social- and pedagogical key principles
contradict with the implemented educational policy of active learning in Ethiopian primary education
and why they cause implementation challenges. For this purpose eleven schools on two different
places in Ethiopia are researched.
The main question this research seeks to address is:
How is active learning understood and implemented in primary education in Ethiopia; and from
the perspectives of local actors, to what extent is it an appropriate pedagogy for the pedagogical-,
cultural- and social context of Ethiopia?
To answer this question, five sub-questions are formulated:
1. How do teachers view active learning?
2. How is active learning implemented by teachers in primary schools?
3. Which challenges do teachers experience when implementing active learning?
4. What are the (expected) outcomes of active learning?
5. From the perspective of teachers, what would be a relevant and appropriate approach of
active learning in primary education concerning the existing pedagogical-, social and cultural
rules in Ethiopia?
2.5 Research Outline
After this introducing chapter about the aim and relevance of the research, Chapter 3 follows with
the theoretical framework which explains the meaning of active learning and the how and why of the
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implementation of it in sub-Saharan Africa. This chapter is followed by Chapter 4 which is a section
about the contextual background wherein the research has been carried out. It includes
geographical, cultural and economic information, but also an extended description of the educational
system of Ethiopia and its challenges. After this, Chapter 5 follows, which explains the methodology
as well as the involved participants and other relevant stakeholders. The findings will be presented
after this Chapte. It starts with Chapter 6 which gives an overview of the diverse existing views on
active learning by the involved participants. Chapter 7 focuses on the outcomes of active learning
and Chapter 8 on the implementation practices. Finally, the conclusion is presented in Chapter 9
where findings will be connected with broader theories and issues. Furthermore, the main question
is answered, recommendations are made as well as suggestions for further research.
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3. Theoretical Framework
The policy of active learning in Ethiopia is originated from different global political, economic and
social processes. In this section these processes will be explained along with the policy of active
learning. This section starts with the explanation about the active learning pedagogy in proportion
with learner-centred approaches on education, followed by the role of the teacher in this approach.
After, this section focuses sub-Sahara Africa and the educational policy transfers, the social and
cultural contexts and it concludes with the implementation challenges.
3.1 Active Learning and Learner-Centred Education
Learner-centred education, child-centred education, cooperative learning and active learning
are based on the ideas of the renowned scientists Vygotsky, Dewey and Piaget. While the approaches
are all centred around the learning process of students and use active involvement as a starting
point, these approaches are not the same (Van Harmelen, 1998). Learner-centred forms of education
originated from the constructivist approach and the cognitive psychology as an alternative to the
behaviouristic psychology which was the basis for traditional teacher-centred approaches (Prince,
2004). Active learning in specific is defined by Prince (2004) as followed:
‘Active learning is generally defined as any instructional method that engages students in
the learning process. In short, active learning requires students to do meaningful learning
activities and think about what they are doing.’ (P.1.)
The question is, why is active involvement and active learning important for learning processes?
Active learning is important for making transfer of knowledge from abstract concepts into real life
situations. Learning occurs when students are able to build their new acquired knowledge on existing
knowledge and when they can translate knowledge to personal or practical situations. It is important
to activate students to construct their own knowledge. To achieve this education should for example
exist of interactions between students and sources of knowledge, peers and teachers. Knowledge
should not be determined to one single topic but should be transferable to other topics and, at the
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end, real life situations. The purpose of this approach towards learning is to stimulate active
exploration, concept building, construction of knowledge and developing meta-cognitive skills, and
focuses on understanding rather than memorizing the subject matter (Campione, Shapiro & Brown,
1994; Van Harmelen, 1998; Volman, 2006). One of the overarching goals of this approach is to create
critical democratic thinkers. Therefore learner-centred education, and specific active learning, has an
inquiry based approach. Active learning stimulates students to constantly assess their thinking and
valuing new knowledge. Inquiry based learning lets students approach issues from different sides
(Tabulawa, 2003). Additionally, active learning encourages teachers to analyse the educational needs
and learning styles of their students. Teachers adjust their teaching methods to this and are able to
create more space for the individual learning styles. Therefore, learning is accessible for a broader
group of students and with different learning styles (Norman & Spohrer, 1996).
The teacher-centred approach is often perceived as the opposite of learner-centred
education and in practice it certainly is. Teacher-centred education is based on the behaviouristic
approach of teaching whereby learning is more or less an individual process. The learning process is
in the hands of the teacher as an ‘instructional designer’ as Anderson & Dron (2011) (p. 82) state. The
behaviouristic approach of education is perceived as effective in situations with limited recourses or
any other (educational) materials, as it is mostly the case in remote or poor areas of countries in sub-
Sahara Africa (Anderson & Dron, 2011; Embet, 2004; Van Harmelen, 1998).
One of the important criticisms on this approach is that it does not utilize the full capacity of
learning of the human brain. It is all about memorizing knowledge instead of making constructions of
understanding about certain concepts (Anderson & Dron, 2011; Van Harmelen, 1998). In addition,
Serbessa (2006) argues that in practice students are ‘passive recipients of knowledge’ and learning
consists without any interaction (p.129).
It is widely believed by educators that children learn more when they are actively involved in
the lessons and the subject matter (Prince, 2004). As Dale (1970) states: ‘A weakness of all education
is that the verbally stated concepts and principles are not firmly grounded in and based on the rich
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experience of the learners.’ (p. 101). Dale’s ‘Cone of Experience’ illustrates that learners remember
up to 90% of what they do or experience in contrast to the maximum percentage of 50% of what
they see and hear with passive learning. This states that by using active learning methods whereby
learners are actively involved, teachers can
maximize students’ learning process, which
is not the case with teacher-centred
methods (Dale, 1970; Edukans, 2014). In
this process the emphasis is on the
interaction between the learner and his
environment, like peers or the teacher but

Figure 1 ‘Cone of Experience’ according to Dale (1970) in
Edukans (2014)
also on external resources as internet,
books and other materials outside the classroom (Van Harmelen, 1998). The collaborative and
cooperative elements of active learning have positive effects on academic achievements, students
attitude towards education and meta-cognitive skills, like for example interpersonal skills (Prince,
2004). The teacher brings real-life materials into the classroom to connect knowledge and the
subject matter to real-life situations (Campione, Shapiro & Brown, 1994; Van Harmelen, 1998). This
ensures that knowledge better roots and improves the recall of it later on (Prince, 2004).
Linton, Farmer & Peterson (2014) argue that active learning only leads to improved student
outcomes when it is implemented by an experienced teacher who is knowledgeable about the
pedagogical approach of it. According to Smith et al. (2009) effective implementation of active
learning needs a certain order. Peer interaction between students must be followed by an instructor-
facilitated explanation because of two reasons. One reason is that research has shown that all
students of different ability-level benefit from this order of discussion and instruction, rather than
using a different order. The second reason is that because of this combination of peer discussion and
instructor explanation, a combination is made of student engagement through peer learning, like for
example discussion, and instructor feedback. This leads to an increasing engagement of the students
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in the learning process (Linton, Farmer & Peterson, 2014; Smith et al., 2011). The conclusion of this
might be that the teacher has an important role in the implementation of active learning.
One of overarching goals of active learning is to make students responsible for their own
learning process whereby they search for information and knowledge driven by their intrinsic
motivation. Active learning is implemented in order to stimulate life-long learning and to establish a
flexible application of knowledge in any situation (Northern Ireland Curriculum, 2007; Verspoor,
2008).
3.2 Role of the Teachers and Students
In the specific case of active learning
teachers should have the role of a
facilitator which is an important
element. The teacher in the role of
facilitator supports students when
they are learning and developing
skills like having discussions, solving
problems, working in groups and
working independently. As shown Figure 2 Possible roles of a facilitator from Northern Ireland Curriculum (2007)
in figure 2 (Northern Ireland Curriculum, 2007) this role has many sub-roles. The teacher needs to
decide which role is appropriate for the particular situation and the ability of the students. This
means that teachers need to have extended knowledge about and experience in the roles (Northern
Ireland Curriculum, 2007; Linton, Farmer & Peterson, 2014).
Bransford, Brown & Cocking (2000) argue that these requirements have implications on the
work of a teacher. First, teachers have to draw out and work with the pre-existing understandings
that their students bring with them into the classroom. Second, teachers must teach some subject
matter in depth, providing many examples for the same concept and provide a firm foundation of
factual knowledge. Finally, they need to integrate the teaching of meta-cognitive skills into the
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curriculum in various subject areas (p. 19-21). Moreover, teachers need to know everything about
their students’ learning styles and mediate and adjust the lesson’s content according to it.
(Bransford, Brown & Cocking, 2000).
3.3 International Policy and the Social Context of Sub-Sahara Africa
Learner-centred education and active learning are the most commonly imported strategies to
improve the quality of education in sub-Saharan Africa. Since the 1990s, a reforming of curricula and
teacher trainer colleges has been taking place in several developing countries around the globe
(Sriprakash, 2009; Chisholm & Leyendecker, 2008). To understand active learning in its current state
in Ethiopia it will be necessary to explore the social context of sub-Sahara Africa and how active
learning has been brought there.
3.3.1 The Social Context of Sub-Sahara Africa and the aim of International Organizations
Since the 1980s and 1990s globalisation rooted in several sub-Saharan countries. This was also the
starting point of social-economic development and educational reform in this part of the world.
According to Chisholm & Leyendecker (2008) there are four developments to distinguish which form
the basis for reformation of the educational policy in sub-Sahara Africa; globalisation, changed
focuses and priorities of international aid, the inclusion sub-Saharan countries in the world order,
and the overflow of new ideas about education coming from the Western world (p. 198). In that
period many sub-Saharan countries started to open up their markets for international trade,
foundations for liberal market economies came up, interest in democratisation and openness
towards new educational ideas emerged (Chisholm & Leyendecker; 2008). Governments and
international aid organisations, for example, International Non-Governmental Organisations (INGOs),
Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) and state aid programs, perceived learner-centred
education as appropriate to reach liberalisation and democratisation and it became part of the
international development agendas (Tabulawa, 2003).
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The question is, why would active learning be an appropriate approach to reach this?
Verspoor (2008) argues that the sub-Saharan economies are increasingly knowledge and skills based,
driven by technical developments and part of a global network of trade (p.1). To meet these
demands, employees with extended skills, cognitive and non-cognitive knowledge, and the ability to
life-long learning are needed. Improved quality and access to education which adopts these
requirements is the key to economic development.
From an educational perspective active learning contributes to improved cognitive and non-
cognitive skills which become more important in these 21st century economies and societies (Jolles &
Keizer, 2015). In the transforming societies and economies of sub-Sahara Africa, other skills are
required than solely reproducing knowledge. Practical application and a constant life-long
acquirement of knowledge is required and appropriate in those changing economies which is an
important reason for the implementation of active learning in sub-Saharan educational systems
(Preece, 2013). Regarding this, Jolles (2015) argues that every student has to be able to apply
knowledge not only inside the school context but also outside of it. To achieve that, students have to
gain experience in how to apply knowledge in practice and be aware of which role their knowledge
has in their real-life situations (Volman, 2006). Moreover, active learning methods provoke the
development of the non-cognitive skills or, like self-knowledge, motivation, curiosity and reflective
skills. Well-developed non-cognitive skills ensures better cognitive results due to improved
motivation, the ability to prioritise knowledge and making transfers from concepts into practical
knowledge (Jolles & Keizer, 2015). This could lead to a better educated population which is beneficial
for economic developments (Verspoor, 2008).
Despite these progressive developments, critical voices occurred from various stakeholders.
In some cases implementation programs are carried out by financial support from the West (Tota,
2014). On one hand it creates international pressure to implement the policies, devised by
international organizations from the Western countries (Chisholm & Leyendecker, 2008). On the
other it creates dependency of developing countries that implement the policy. This inhibits further
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development on own insight or initiative of developing countries (Bermingham 2011). Collins &
Rhoads (2010) argue that this way of implementing educational policy contributes to ‘asymmetrical’
relations between sub-Saharan countries and the Western world (p. 203). Learner-centred education
is seen by different stakeholders as a 'Western' approach to education, suitable for a society that
revolves around individual well-being and prestige (Preece, 2013, p. 103). The criticism of these
stakeholders (in developing countries) is based on the idea that this approach of education of the
Western world is not consistent with some of the social and cultural values of the societies in sub-
Sahara Africa, regarding the collective character of the community and society (Altinyelken, 2010;
Preece, 2013; Schweisfurth, 2011). International organizations take pedagogies into account of the,
in several researches so called, Western countries, as a measure of the quality of education. It is
questionable if it really leads to improved quality, whilst the local contexts, like manners of
communication and intercourse, working conditions and social norms, are not taken into account
during de the development of the policy (Bermingham 2011; Tabulawa, 2003). Preece (2013) argues
for example that one of the key values in sub-Saharan societies is the collective self-reliance and the
centrality of the community. Western educational policies are focussed on individual self-reliance
and development of individual well-being and success. In these sub-Saharan contexts, education
should contribute to collective self-reliance, but this does not correspond with the objectives of the
implementation initiated by international organisations and governments.
3.3.2 Implementation Challenges
3.3.2.1 Teachers and the Context
The implementation of active learning seems difficult in developing countries. To start, teachers are
trained to teach according to the 'chalk and talk' approach (Preece, 2013). This means that teachers
are used to a teacher-centred approach of education. Students are expected to listen passively and
with hardly an opportunity for further interaction between peers or with the teacher. To change this
approach intensive training is needed. The actual situation in many sub-Saharan-countries is that the
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teachers are required to implement active learning after very limited training of poor quality. They
simply do not know how to implement and how to cope with active learning. As a result elements of
active learning are implemented but teachers do not know what they are doing exactly and why they
are doing it (Serbessa, 2006).
In addition, Tabulawa (1997) argues that when the implementation of certain pedagogies
fails in developing countries, the educational context in relation to past values and experiences must
be analysed to examine the causes which are underlying the failure. When these values are
incongruent with for example active learning values, it is hard for teachers to adopt the values of
new pedagogies or they even reject to implement it. Moreover, this is also applicable for students.
They might reject to participate in the way it is required, because they are not used to it and it does
not correspond with their cultural and social background. Not only is this the case for teachers, but
for local directors and policy makers as well (Tabulawa, 1997; Serbessa, 2006). Not only social and
cultural issues occur when implementing the active learning policy, practical problems also need to
be taken into account like class size, lack of teaching materials, age differences and teacher capacity
(Schweisfurth, 2011; UNICEF, 2012; EFA, 2014).
3.3.2.2 The Importance of the Community in the Implementation Process
As mentioned earlier, community-life is very important in many sub-Saharan societies. Local
contexts can have many mutual differences regarding traditions and priorities within a country.
Therefore educational policy should be suitable for the local contexts. The common value in local
educational discourses in many sub-Saharan countries is that community needs to have a higher
priority than individual needs. Knowledge serves as a common good which is distributed along the
community members hence everyone benefits from it. Therefore knowledge should be useful for the
whole community and not only for one individual which is the case with Western approaches of
education (Preece, 2013; Ministry of Education and Vocational Training, 2008; Unterhalter, 2012;).
For the diffusion of active learning this means that the involvement of the community has a
very important function to overcome implementation challenges. It has a positive influence on
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student results, their motivation and attitude towards education. More specific, in an educational
context with limited available resources, community involvement ensures learning materials and
financial resources. Schools and communities are dependent on each other. The school, in its turn,
ensures educated community members and new knowledge (Miller-Gransvauw & Yoder, 2002; Rose,
2003;).
Pannah (2003) argues in the research of Said & Ahmad (2015) that community involvement is
important for a shared ownership of the implemented policy which can lead to a successful
implementation of new pedagogies which is better adapted to the needs. This is important in
consultation of the research of Preece (2013) who argues that education in sub-Sahara Africa should
serve the development of the community and not the individual prestige of a learner. Home, school
and community are inextricably linked in different ways (Bransford, Brown & Cocking, 2000; Said &
Ahmad, 2015). This means that the needs, values and behaviours of local communities should be
intertwined and involved in the implementation of new policy, like Tabulawa (2003) argues.
21
4. Contextual Background
The research has been carried out in Ethiopia, which is
located in the horn of Africa as figure 3 shows. This section
gives an overview of the country of Ethiopia, its
population, political system, its position with respect to
other countries in the world, the research locations, the
history of education, the implementation of active learning
and finally it gives some brief information about this
Figure 3 Ethiopia
research.
4.1 Country profile of Ethiopia
Ethiopia, previously known as Abyssinia, is a landlocked country in the horn of Africa and
borders Djibouti, Eritrea, Kenya, Somalia, Sudan and South Sudan (CIA Factbook, 2014). The capital is
Addis Ababa and the country is divided in eight regions: Afar, Amhara, Benishangul – Gumuz, Harari,
Oromia, Somali, State Of Southern Nations (SNNP) and Tigray. Eritrea has been a province of Ethiopia
between 1961 and 1993 but became independent after the Eritrean war of independence which
ended in 1991 (Briggs, 2012). Ethiopia has a population of 96 million inhabitants and a population
growth of 2.9%. This makes Ethiopia the second
most populated country in sub-Sahara Africa (World
Bank, 2015). As figure 4 shows, 44.2% of the total
population is aged between 0 and 14 years old and
half of the population is younger than 18 years old.
This brings pressure on primary education, because
of the high numbers of children that follow

Figure 4 Distribution of population in Ethiopia (CIA
Factbook, 2015)
22
education or that has to be educated. Of the total population, 17.2% lives in the cities (CIA Factbook,
2014; UNICEF Statistics, 2013). Thereby Ethiopia is one of the least urbanized countries in the world
(DHS, 2011). The official language is Amharic but Oromifa (Oromo), which is the language of the
largest province Oromia, is also widely spoken (Briggs, 2012). The main religions in Ethiopia are
Ethiopian Orthodox (43,5%), Muslim (33.9%) and Protestant-Christian (18.5%). The rest of the
population adhere a traditional religion (2.7%) or is Catholic (0.7%) (CIA Factbook, 2014). There are
about 80 ethnic groups in the country.
In contrast to the majority of the other sub-Saharan countries, Ethiopia does not have an
extended colonial past. It has been briefly occupied by Italy between 1936 and 1941. Nowadays
Ethiopia is a republic under the rule of prime minister Desalegn and since 1991 the ruling party
‘Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front’ (EPRDF) (World Bank, 2015).
In the UNDP’s Human Development Index, Ethiopia is ranked 174 out of 187 countries. This
means that 39% of the population lives below the poverty line, the Gross National Income per capita
is $1,500 (Netherlands: $47,400) and the unemployment of youth between 15 and 24 years old is
24.9% is. The average life expectancy is 63.6 years (CIA Factbook, 2014; UNDP, 2014). The child
labour rate between the age of 5 and 14 is 53%. Ethiopia’s economy is based on agriculture (47.7%)
and coffee is the major export product. 61% of the total population of Ethiopia is illiterate and the
average years of schooling is 2.4 years (CIA Factbook, 2014; UNDP, 2014).
4.2 Education in Ethiopia
4.2.1 Short history
In the past the Ethiopian education was highly influenced by Church Education and is an
important basis for educated people nowadays. Clerics were being employed as teachers to children
in wealthy households. Ethiopia’s past emperor, Haile Selassie, ended this system to establish a
more modernized system to combat with the educational systems of the rest of the world (Girma,
2012; Serbessa, 2006). Haile Selassie was the last emperor of Ethiopia. He ruled the country from
23
1930 up to 1936 and between 1941 and 1974. Selassie had a great international diplomatic respect
and he fought against colonialism (Briggs, 2012).
After Selassie the era of the communist Derg regime dawned in 1974. With Derg, Selassie’s
line of rationalization of education in Ethiopia continued. However, Derg emphasized science and
reason as the starting point of education but there was no room for free thinking and exploration.
The Marxist point of view served as the starting point of each course (Girma, 2012).
In 1991 the EPRDF became the ruling party which meant a change in the Ethiopian
educational system. The government and the ministry of Education at that time attracted external
funds to invest in the quality of education. The investment in the quality of education was part of the
‘Educational Sector Strategy’ policy in 1994. The number of TTC increased and a shift was introduced
from teacher-centred to more active involvement of the students in lessons but it was complex. In
this EPRDF-era the World Bank started to invest in Ethiopian education (Tekeste, 2006; World Bank,
2015).
Nowadays the profession of teacher is not highly valued. Also the entrance criteria for the
TTC’s are low. Previously the course for becoming a teacher was one year, whereas it is 3 years
nowadays. After graduating teachers receive a diploma. The government, in cooperation with NGO’s,
are investing in TTC’s for improvement of the quality of education (Van der Meer, 2014).
4.2.2 Primary Education Nowadays
In its current state the Ethiopian primary education consists of eight years. In the lower
classes, grade 1 up till 4, the teacher is teaching all subjects whereas in the upper classes, grade 5 up
till 8, students are taught by specialized teachers. After primary school, students proceed to
secondary education as figure 5 shows. After this they graduate with a certification or continue to
grade 11 and 12 in preparation for higher education (AIR, 2012; CSA et al., 2012).
The average pupil-teacher ratio is 50 in primary education (AIR, 2012; CSA et al., 2012). Since
1984, the language of instruction in grade 1 up till 4 is the national and the regional language,
Amharic and one of the local languages. Officially between grade 5 and 8 (depending on the region)
24
the language of instruction has change to English (AIR, 2012). In practice, the instruction language is
the national or the local language or both (Browes, 2014).
There are two sorts of schools
to distinguish, the government schools
and the non-government schools,
which are mostly private schools. The
most common are the government
schools which are, as the name
suggests, owned by the government.
In general private schools charge
higher school fees and is, due to that,
only accessible for children of more

Figure 5 Educational system of Ethiopia (Tessema, 2012)
affluent families. The non-government
schools include public school, religious schools and international schools. The public schools are
founded and operated by the local population and are dependent on student fees. Another sub-
category are the church schools which are owned by the Ethiopian Orthodox Church (CSA et al,
2012).
Throughout primary education boys are more represented than girls, specifically in rural
areas. In the bigger cities more girls are involved in education (UNICEF, 2012). According to Embet
(2004) this minority of girls has different reasons. One reason could be that in the Ethiopian society it
is more common for girls to help in the household and taking care of the livestock and the crops.
Girls who are involved in education tend to come from either more wealthy families. A second
reason could be that, especially in rural areas, the low literacy-rate amongst parents leads to the fact
that children go to school less often. Education has a lower priority to those societies. The same
applies to children from labour families in urban areas. Generally the rule applies that the further in
the educational process, the fewer girls are participating in education. The majority of the girls stop
25
their educational career after primary education. Off course, there is a difference visible between
rural- and urban areas (Embet, 2004; UNICEF, 2012).
Another challenge for female students is discrimination. Not all schools are always
welcoming to girls. The majority of teachers are male and this has the implication that boys are more
often participating in the classroom than girls, because they are prejudiced towards the roles of men
and female. Boys often have more access to learning facilities than girls due to this prejudice (Embet,
2004). UNICEF (2012) claims that nowadays there is an increasing amount of girls involved in
education.
4.3 Implementation of Active Learning in Ethiopian Education
This sub-section focuses on through which ways active learning is implemented in Ethiopian primary
education. It starts with why educational reform was needed and what this implied for the school,
the curriculum and for teachers in Ethiopia. It is followed by the role of students in the
implementation of active learning.
4.3.1 The Need of Educational Reform and Teacher Training
The government of Ethiopia has determined that the quality of education must be improved
because of its low level of quality and the difference between the cognitive level of students when
they leave primary school and the requisite cognitive level at the end of primary education. In order
to achieve this, money is invested in education and implementation of interactive learning methods.
Meanwhile, active learning is a widely known concept in education in Ethiopia, but in reality it is
understood by few. According to some studies, in practice, teachers do not know how to use, apply
and implement it. The implementation of active learning is mandatory by the Ethiopian government,
but the problem is that they only provide limited and insufficient trainings. This makes the
implementation a complex process (Serbessa, 2006).
In addition, Coe (2005) in Chisholm & Leyendecker (2008) states that at school level various
international, national and local discourses coexist within the same school. Due to the absence of a
26
uniform policy, traditional education may persist. UNICEF (2012) claims that there is also a noticeable
difference in the degree of implementation of active learning methods between urban and rural
areas in Ethiopia. In rural areas, active learning is less often implemented due to the limited
resources.
Progress has been seen in in the accessibility to primary education in Ethiopia. The most
powerful way to improve the quality of education is investing in teachers and student teachers. The
majority of the teachers in Ethiopia teaches the traditional teacher-centred way as they were taught
in their schools, mostly church schools, and at the teacher training colleges (Serbessa, 2006). The
improvement of quality education means a shift from the teacher-centred approach to the learner-
centred approach, but still traditional, cultural, and social values are deeply rooted in the daily
education of Ethiopia. Traditional beliefs serve and have served as the cultural frame in modern
teaching and learning in Ethiopia. Student teachers at Teacher Training Colleges (TTC) hardly gain
knowledge related to active learning. TTCs claim that they educate student teachers in active
learning methods and learner-centred education but in practice these institutes have little
understanding about what these terms actually mean. The concept of active learning is therefore
understood in many different ways and, as a result, is practiced in many different ways. The
challenge for the current older and younger generations of teachers in Ethiopia is to shift from the
approach they have been thought at TTC into the approach of active learning. The difficulty is to
transfer theoretical knowledge about active learning into practice. These factors make that the
implementation of active learning is a complex process in the Ethiopian primary education (Edukans,
2014, Hoeksma & Sieswerda, 2010; Serbessa, 2006;). This is also an endorsed and recognized
problem in other sub-Saharan countries according to Rogan & Grayson (2003), who argue that the
complexity of implementing a new curriculum is caused by the teachers’ own background, training
level and knowledge about education. These factors are directly related to the extent in which
teachers are accepting and implementing a new policy. This partially explains the difficulties of
implementing active learning in Ethiopia.
27
The current situation in Ethiopian education regarding the improvement of teacher skills is
that the government distributes guidelines about active learning throughout schools. Besides, they
are providing teachers certificate and diploma programs. This has not resulted in the broad
implementation of active learning methods in education (Hoeksma & Sieswerda, 2010). In addition, a
quarter of the teachers who are working in primary education are even under qualified for carrying
out their jobs (UNICEF, 2012).
4.3.2 Students and Active Learning
The other important group which is involved in the implementation of active learning in
Ethiopia are the students themselves. For students too, the learner-centred approach is sometimes
challenging and does not correspond with their social and cultural background. This is caused by
different family traditions and values. One of the core family values in what parents teach their
children is obedience and politeness towards adults. Children are being taught that they accomplish
tasks assigned by adults without any resistance. This results in avoidance of any form of interaction
with the teacher, because it is perceived by students as rude. This contradicts with one of the goals
that active learning stands for, namely promoting interaction between students and the teacher
(Prince, 2004; Serbessa, 2006).
Active learning stimulates self-initiated generating of knowledge and skills for searching
external information in order to develop the learning process. The student is stimulated to use
resources of knowledge rather than just consult the teacher and the textbook for information
(Prince, 2004). In Ethiopian context, this is assumed to be the failure of the teacher in carrying out his
task as an educator which inhibits students of taking own initiatives in order to develop knowledge
and skills (Serbessa, 2006).
All these socio-cultural factors show that the current educational practice may not be the ideal
situation for implementing active learning. Serbessa (2006) argues that the resistance is changing and
acceptance is slowly taking root but active learning does not seem the suitable pedagogical approach
in the Ethiopian cultural educational context. That is exactly what this research tries to investigate.
28
4.4 Research location
This research involved 11 primary schools in
Jimma and Bedele which are cities located in the west
part of Ethiopia. Both cities are located in the Oromia
region, which is the largest province of Ethiopia (see
figure 6) with a population of 27 million inhabitants
where the majority is Muslim. The common language Figure 6 Oromia province
therefore, coexisting with Amharic, is Oromifa. For primary education this implicates two shifts, a
morning shift which is in Amharic and an afternoon shift which is in Oromo or vice versa. Students
can choose which shift they attend, depending on their mother tongue.
Six of the involved primary schools are located in Jimma, which is the largest town in west
Ethiopia with approximately 175,000 inhabitants. The Oromomifa language is most commonly
spoken besides Amharic. Coffee is the main export product of Jimma and this coffee is also known as
the best coffee from Ethiopian grounds (Briggs, 2012).
The other five schools are located in the more rural city called Bedele on the road to the
border with South Sudan. Bedele is about 120 kilometers north west of Jimma and can be
approached in 5 to 6 hours from this place. Bedele has about 19,000 inhabitants and is considerably
smaller than Jimma. Bedele is known by the brewery of the beer brand ‘Bedele’ which is owned by
the Dutch company ‘Heineken’. Heineken is an important employer for the population of Bedele.
All involved schools are community based government schools which means that students
are almost all from the same community. The majority of students are from ‘poor’ families as the
involved directors argued. This is explicable since government schools are better affordable for those
families. The numbers of students of each school is not noted in this research. The teachers’ origin
was from all over the country, because in Ethiopia the government choses the place of work for
teachers. All schools in Jimma are under supervision of regional educational office of Jimma and in
29
Bedele they are under the supervision of the regional office of Bedele. Also the TTC is involved in this
research which is located in Jimma and inhabits students from the region of Jimma.
4.5 Development Expertise Centre
The Development Expertise Center (DEC) supported this research and functioned as a
gatekeeper. DEC is situated in Addis Ababa but the organization has different offices spread out over
the country, also in Jimma and Bedele. All the involved schools were contact-schools of DEC. DEC is
an Ethiopian NGO, established in 2007 and is founded by the Dutch NGO Edukans. DEC operates in
different parts of the country in order to establish local development through several educational
projects from ‘grassroots level’ in corporation with the Edukans foundation. One of the educational
projects are teacher training programs in order to implement active learning. This is done with
cooperation of Edukans and the University of Amsterdam as part of the BEQUIP program which
stands for Basic Education Quality Improvement Program. This program focuses on capacity building
for teachers and on TTCs to create ownership for the policy of active learning and the sustainability
of it (Annual Abstract, 2013; Edukans, 2014; Hoeksma & Sieswerda, 2010).
30
5. Methodology
5.1 Research Methods
This section focuses on how this qualitative research has been carried out and which research
methods are used. It starts with a brief outline about the sample, followed by an explanation of the
interviews, classroom observations and the curriculum analysis. This section concludes with how the
data is analyzed, the epistemological considerations and, finally, the limitations of this research.
5.1.1 Sample
The aim of this interpretative research was to get a better understanding of how active learning is
understood and implemented in Ethiopian primary education. It also tries to get a better
understanding to what extent active learning is a suitable approach in the social, cultural and
pedagogical context of the primary education in the country. These concepts are intertwined and
therefore not independently measured. To investigate this, the research is done by involving a great
variety of people (N=117): primary school teachers and directors, TTC-teachers, NGO-employees,
students and other relevant people. The used data collection methods were in-depth interviews
(n=40), group interviews (n=11), classroom observations (n=42) and curriculum and document
analysis (n=2). All involved primary schools and the TTC were DEC-contact schools and were recruited
through DEC. These data collection methods will be explained in this section.
Table 1: Total number of resources
Method Total number
Interview - unstructured 40
Group interview 11 (33 participants)
Classroom observations 42
Documents 2 (curriculum English and BEQUIP school data)
31
5.1.2 Interviews
During the interviews, a differentiation is made between key teachers and non-key teachers. Key
teachers have received one or more trainings about active learning from DEC in cooperation with the
Edukans foundation as part of the BEQUIP-program. Therefore they are followed by DEC several
times a year to monitor their progression and to give (peer) feedback about their teaching. These key
teachers have the task to train their peer teachers who have not received training at the schools
where they are employed. The knowledge of the non-key teachers about active learning is derived
from classroom observations, peer trainings, information they got from key teachers and information
provided by the government about active learning.
The most important source of data in this research were the semi-structured in-depth
interviews with primary school teachers, directors or vice directors and TTC-teachers. Additionally
the group interviews with primary school teachers and students, as part of the BEQUIP-program,
were used as background data. Finally, information gathered from other relevant stakeholders was
used. The interviews stopped when theoretical saturation was reached and no new information was
derived from it. After conducting all the interviews, the data is divided in three groups based on the
relevance of the information for this research.
5.1.2.1 Group 1
To group 1 belong all interviewed primary school teachers, directors or vice directors and all
involved TTC-teachers in Jimma and Bedele (see table 2). The respondents were employed at 9
different primary schools and 1 TTC. This group is named ‘group 1’ because the data gathered out of
the interviews served as the most important data source in this research. Primary school teachers
were involved because of their direct involvement with the implementation of active learning. The
TTC-teachers were interviewed to get a better understanding of how active learning is implemented
in primary schools and which challenges teachers are facing.
All participants were interviewed by the same researcher in comparable situations. The
interviews of this group were conducted in separate rooms or classrooms at the schools where they
32
were employed and were one-on-one interviews in attendance of the translator. The majority of
participants had a poor English speaking level, therefore all interviewees were asked whether they
agree with the presence of a translator. All of the primary school teachers used this possibility, the
TTC-teachers were interviewed without a translator as their level of English was sufficient. The
translated interviews were from Oromifa or Amharic into English, depending on the preference of
the participant. All participants were asked whether they agreed with the recording of the interviews
for the purpose of transcribing. The minority of the primary school teachers and directors agreed in
contrast to the TTC-teachers. The reason for refusing of using a voice recorder was anxiety and
shyness. The duration of all interviews varied from 15 up to 60 minutes.
The last category belonging to this group are Edukans volunteers and employees who were
involved in the implementation of active learning in Ethiopia. The information derived from these
interviews was used to get a better understanding about how the cooperation with the primary
schools started and what the role of Edukans was. The second reason was to get insight whether or
not there was a difference in the intentions of the implementation by Edukans and the perceptions
of the implemented policy by the teachers. For this purpose two volunteers who worked in Ethiopia
and one educational specialist who worked for Edukans in Netherlands were interviewed. They were
interviewed in Dutch at their homes or workplace. The interviews took between 30 and 45 minutes.
Tabel 2: Group 1
Method Stakeholder Sex Total Translator
Semi-structured Primary school Female: 10 15 Yes (majority)

Interviews teachers Male: 5 Key teacher: 11
Directors and Female: 1 5 Yes (majority)
Board-members Male: 4
TTC-teachers Female: 0 8 No
Male: 8
Edukans- Female: 2 3 No
members Male 1
Total Female: 11 31
Male: 17
33
5.1.2.2 Group 2
To group 2 belong all interviews conducted during the one-week visit of the University of
Amsterdam-researchers in the context of the BEQUIP-program. The data of these interviews is used
as background information in support of the information gathered out of the group 1-interviews,
because they were conducted with a different purpose and were not carried out by the researcher.
The aim of this one-week visit and the research was to investigate the transfer between key teachers
and non-key teachers. For that purpose, there were focused group interviews conducted by two
experienced researchers and employees at the same time of the University of Amsterdam. The
groups consisted of only key teachers or a mixture of key teachers and non-key teachers. The
minimum number of participants in these interviews was one and the maximum was 4. The duration
of the interviews was about 30 minutes each and were conducted in separate rooms at the school
compound. The total number of participants was 33 in 11 group interviews, all of them were primary
school teachers, who were employed on five of the contact schools of DEC. These were the same
schools as the involved schools in this research. Some of the participants of group 1 were also
interviewed in group 2. All of the interviews were at least attended by the two researches from the
University of Amsterdam and a TTC-teacher who served as a translator at the same time. On some
occasions there was a second TTC-teacher present.
Students were also part of group two. Four students were interviewed with the aim to
investigate how they like active learning and the lessons of their teachers, which were all involved in
the interviews of this group. They were interviewed in absence of their teachers in comparable
conditions on the school compound. The students were interviewed in pairs of two, attended one of
the upper classes and were chosen by their teachers. This was probably a beneficial choice of the
teachers themselves and has been taken into consideration in this research. Three boys and one girl
were involved. They all came from educated families where at least one of the parents had a good
job.
34
Tabel 3: Group 2 Teachers
Method Key Teachers Non-key Not Specified Total Translator

Teachers
Group interview 10 17 6 33 Yes
Tabel 4: Group 2 Students
Method Sex Total Translator
Group interview Female:1 4 Yes

Male: 3
5.1.2.3 Group 3
To the last group of participant belong all relevant stakeholders who were approached
during the fieldwork. They all agreed to use their information in this research. This group consisted of
four male participants. Two of them were sociologist at that time. One was employed at a regional
educational office in west-Ethiopia and one was an employee of an NGO in Jimma which is focused
on primary education. All information was obtained in the form of an informal conversation about
education in Ethiopia or about the society. It had not the structure of an interview.
5.1.3 Classroom observations
Classroom observations took place between February and March 2015 in ten different
schools in 43 different lessons (see table 5). Nine of these schools were the same as the schools
where the interviewed participants of group 1 were employed. The aim of the observations was to
get an understanding about how active learning is carried out, implemented, perceived and
understood by the key teachers and how students behaved and reacted during these lessons. Non-
key teachers were observed to get an idea about how key teachers used to teach before they
participate in the BEQUIP-program, how active learning is understood and what the differences were
between the key teachers and the non-key teachers. In the same time the behaviour of students was
observed.
35
The observations were carried out in a structured, semi-structured and unstructured way.
These three types of observations were chosen to cover as many events as possible during the
lessons. The unstructured observations were used as the core source of information, the structured
and the semi-structured observations were used as background information. For the structured
observations a BEQUIP-observation scheme was used and for the semi-structured observation a self-
composed question list was used. For the unstructured observations only notes were taken. The
observations were carried out whilst sitting at the back of the classroom focusing on teacher and
student behaviour while applying active learning methods, seating arrangements of the students,
interaction with the teacher and the students and amongst students, (peer-)interaction, the extent
to which students spoke out loud in the class and the content of it, mass-answering, working
together, usage of textbooks and presence of external educational materials. The translator was
present during all observation but was carrying out his job as researcher in the same time.
Eight of the observed teachers were also interviewed. The reasons why more teachers could
not be interviewed and observed were the different shifts in which they were working, holiday,
absence and limited time. The latter was specifically the case in Bedele. All observations were
conducted in the same class visits as the end line observations for the BEQUIP-program which were
carried out by an educational specialist of DEC and their duration varied by 20 minutes up to one
hour. The reason no more time is spent in the classrooms is the same reason as previously
mentioned, holidays and limited time. Observations could not be conducted without a native speaker
translator because all lessons were in local languages. A translator was necessary to get a minimal
idea of what was happening in the classrooms. For this reason the observations were conducted
together with the BEQUIP-observations. There was not chosen for a full translation of the classroom
events because of the limited time and capacity of the translator which was a DEC employee and
researcher at the same time. The second reason was that this put more attention on what sort of
non-verbal and verbal events were happening.
36
Table 5: Classroom observations: Implementation of Active Learning
Place Key teacher Non-key teacher Sex
Jimma 21 6 Female: 16
Male: 11
Bedele 11 4 Female: 7
Male: 8
Total 32 10 43
5.1.4 Curriculum analysis
The final source of information in this research was curriculum analysis conducted in one
subject, English. Unfortunately, all curriculum materials were in Amharic or Oromo. For that reason
the only possibility was to analyse the student books for English. The aim of the analysis was to
investigate to what extent active learning is supported by the curriculum. Structured and semi-
structured analysis is conducted by a self-made analysis scheme. There was no teachers guide
available. The student books were composed by the Ministry of Education of Ethiopia. The books of
the lower classes were composed by the Ministry of Education of Ethiopia in cooperation with the
United States Agency for International Development-fund (US AID). The books for grade 2, 3, 4, 6, 7
and 8 were analysed according to the same scheme. Of every grade-year two randomly chosen
chapters were analysed. At the end 12 chapters were analysed.
The structured analysis was carried out by a self-made observation form. The unstructured
observation focused on whether the exercise interaction between students was supported, whether
there was made use of meaningful examples for the students in the exercises and texts, if the
exercises were not too abstract and had a variation and how they variated.
5.2 Data Analysis
All data is transcribed and coded according to the qualitative content analysis-method by
using Atlas.ti, which is a software program for analysing qualitative data (Bryman, 2012). All the data
was read and coded based on the topics of the research questions and themes derived from the
theoretical framework and the interviews. Coding is done according to the process described by
37
Strauss & Corbin (1990 in Bryman, 2012). The first step was open coding to categorize the data,
followed by the axial coding whereby the codes were linked to each other and to contexts, for
example cultural and social situations where the participant lived and worked in. Finally, the data
was coded selectively whereby the categories were linked to the research questions, the ‘core
category’ (Bryman, 2012). The mentioned groups were analysed in the same order, first group 1 and
so on. Codes as ‘view on active learning’, ‘implementation’, ‘challenges’, ‘outcomes’,
‘implementation’, ‘role of the community, management, curriculum or NGO’, ‘training’, ‘role of
cultural background of the teacher’, ‘role of cultural background of the student’ and ‘further
developments of Ethiopia’ are an example of the used codes. Also non-verbal signals and
interactions, for example between participants, between researcher or translator and the
participants, were used in the process of analysis to get an idea about the reliability of the given
information.
5.3 Epistemological Position and Ethical Considerations
Social researchers must be aware of their influence on the gathered data. During this research, I was
aware that it was not possible to collect totally objective data and the influence of my presence on
what I observed in the classrooms. During the data-collection process and the process of
constructing theory, I was aware of my origin, social- and cultural background, position and many
other factors that I could not change which have had an influence on my interpretation of the data.
Therefore I allotted myself a subtle realism view, which means that I was aware of my presence in
the interviews and observations and this influenced the social reality at that moment and probably
before I was there. I had a role in the social reality that made my presence a part of the research (G.
Moerman, college: ‘What is actually important?’ 4th of November 2013).
All participants were informed about the aim of the research, their rights to withdraw at any
moment they chose, the anonymity and confidentiality of the information they gave during the
interviews and my independent position as a researcher. I stressed twice in each interview that I was
38
not on behalf of the University of Amsterdam and neither on that of the Edukans foundation, so that
they could express their ideas without any fear. So did the translator.
5.4 Limitations of the Study
Several limitation can be mentioned regarding this research. One of the limitations is that the
research was conducted at eleven primary schools in Ethiopia. The results deriving from this study
cannot be generalised for the Ethiopian primary education as a whole. It is aimed that this research
gives an insight in the implementation of active learning on micro level, the primary school. For a
broader generalization more schools in different regions had to be involved.
Another limitation of this research is the language. Almost all participants who were
interviewed on primary schools had a poor level of English and a translator was always necessary.
The researcher had to trust the translations of the translator. Despite the translator being very
dedicated and reliable, it was uncontrollable whether the translation was correctly interpreted or
not.
For the observations this meant that the translator had to translate the events happening in
the classroom. It was impossible to cover everything. Therefore only the headlines were translated
and eventually significant details. The advantage was that the researcher could also focus on non-
verbal expressions without hearing the content of it. A disadvantage is that the content of the lesson
could not always be understood in alignment of active learning. The latter is not seen as a limitation
actually.
Time was sometimes a limitation in this research. Part of the data-collection period was
during the holidays or after. Some students and teachers extended their holidays with one or two
weeks when the observations were planned. The implication was that sometimes a quarter of the
students was present or even less. Because the observations took place during the BEQUIP-
observations, other observations were difficult to plan without a translator. This did not diminish the
aim of the research.
39
Finally, the research was carried out in a turbulent time in anticipation of the governmental
elections. The researcher was told by different resources that this might affect the results. The
researcher had to withdraw from asking any political related questions because of the position or
possible anxiety of the participants. The limitation of this factor was that some participants were
afraid to answer critical questions about the policy of active learning. Especially when there was no
translator present. This might have had influence on the objectivity of the data.
The presence of a translator who was an employee of DEC was not a problem at all. All
participants had a very good relationship with him and had known him for years already. They could
share anything with him and felt free to express any critical remarks with him.
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6. Diverse Views on Active Learning
6.1 Views on Active Learning
This section explains how several interviewed stakeholders view active learning and what it means
for further developments in Ethiopia. Primary school teachers, directors, TTC-teachers and students
are interviewed to provide an overview of how active learning is viewed.
6.1.1 Importance of Active Learning for Further Developments in Ethiopia
Almost all interviewees had favourable views on active learning. It stimulates the development of
self-confidence, self-esteem, expression skills, critical thinking, working together, independent
learning and thinking, critical thinking and assertiveness which are important future skills, as teachers
argue. Active learning is very important for further developments in Ethiopia, because it assures
quality education, whereby education is not abstract anymore but becomes concrete and reachable
for all types of learners, as participants argue:
‘Without AL there is no learning at al. We don’t prefer to go back to the lecture method of
teaching.’ (TTC-teacher, male)
Active learning ensures practical application of (non-)cognitive knowledge in real-life situations which
is useful for their future jobs. It leads to well qualified critical manpower which is beneficial for the
prosperity of the country in many ways, according to TTC-teachers.
Some interviewees mention that active learning requires knowledge of international
scientific theories and researches. This is beneficial for the knowledge and skills of teachers. Ethiopia
needs to learn from other countries regarding the development of education in international
prospective. They speculated about the future contribution of Ethiopia on this scientific knowledge.
6.1.2 Definitions by Teachers and Directors
The views on active learning by key teachers and directors did not differ. Both groups consider active
learning as a student-centred teaching method which involves students actively in the lessons. It is an
interactive way of learning and teaching through group discussions which aims to stimulate learning
41
together. Teachers state that the implementation of active learning promotes student learning,
because learners learn by peer- and group discussions and by conversations with teachers. ‘Multi-
dimensional learning’, as one of the directors call it, occurs especially when students are mixed on
ability-level. Multi-dimensional in this context means that students do not only use the teacher as a
resource, which is the case with teacher-centred education, but by using different resources like
peers, books, parents or the internet. Slow learners profit from advanced learning- and discussion
skills of the fast learners and vice versa.
Moreover, teachers view active learning as a less abstract way of learning compared to
teacher-centred education. Teachers use concrete materials to support the content of the lessons,
like real flowers, measurement instruments and pictures. Students are ‘experiencing’ what they
learn and it makes learning more easy, because it appeals to their imagination. As one of the
teachers states:
‘Learners are digging out of this method.’ (Teacher grade 3, female)
The teacher refers to the consideration that active learning offers a variety of possibilities of learning
for all kinds of learning styles. It leads to higher learning efficiency because teachers, as they state,
build knowledge on existing knowledge.
Regarding non-cognitive knowledge, key-teachers and directors define active learning as a
way of teaching that makes learners more independent of the teachers. Students have to search for
knowledge by themselves which makes it their own responsibility to search for and internalize the
required knowledge and skills for the task or exam. This responsibility makes students independent
thinkers, according to the interviewed group.
Non-key teachers define active learning mainly as a way of teaching whereby students are
working together as a group for the purpose of learning from each other, which differs from the
views of key teachers and directors. They view active learning less as a multi-dimensional way of
learning but more as target to reach in each lesson. The interviews show that they have limited
knowledge about how to implement active learning and why they have to implement it. Therefore,
42
they are not able to underpin their views on active learning, other than finding it ‘good’ and
‘important’, as they name it. In other words, they do not know the ‘how’ and ‘why’ of active learning.
Classroom observations, which were part of the data collection process, confirm that they have
limited knowledge about what they are implementing. They explain that the teacher-centred
approach is easier, less time consuming and they have more knowledge about it. Therefore the
teacher-centred method works better for them.
Non-key teachers receive trainings about active learning from key teachers. This is, according
to the interviewed TTC-teachers, of a lower level then the DEC-trainings without examples or
practical exercises. Which is logical because key teachers are not trained to be educational trainers
for peers. To reach this, key teachers should be equipped with training skills for their peers.
6.1.3 Definitions of Active Learning by TTC-teachers
TTC-teachers view active learning as a teaching technique to engage students in the lessons, subject
matter and education. The role of the teacher is being a facilitator in the learning process and the
creator of conditions which excite and challenge students to learn and to be interested in the subject
matter. As one of the TTC-teachers state:
‘Active learning encourages students to use all their sentences to learn and to get involved in
their own learning processes.’ (TTC-teacher, male)
Active learning is the way to make students independent critical thinkers with practical and well
developed learning skills. This group also mentions that active learning makes students responsible
for their own learning process and it makes them less shy, which is endorsed by primary school
teachers as well. They get used to discussing, presenting and collaborating, which make students
more assertive. This all is viewed as quality education by TTC-teachers. Though, active learning
means a mind-set to switch from a teacher-centred technique to a student-centred teaching method.
According to the TTC-teachers one of the major misconceptions about active learning by
primary school teachers is that active learning always has to be active. They perceive that every
lesson has to contain at least a working-together-section and a group-discussions-section, whilst
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active learning also means working active individually. Students need to be engaged in the content
by providing interesting education which adapts to their interests and learning styles, no matter if
they work together or individually, according to TTC-teachers.
6.1.4 Definitions by Students
In the interviews, students mainly explained their experiences with active learning. They like the
interactive way of teaching, especially the use of different educational materials and strategies (e.g.
worksheets, concrete materials), group discussions, participation in the lessons and the interaction
with the teacher. This helps them to get a better understanding of the subject matter. Observations
show that some students do like active learning, because they participate and have fun carrying out
the assignments together.
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7. Outcomes
This section focuses on the (personal) outcomes of the implementation of active learning of teachers,
directors, TTC-teachers and students. Key teachers feel better skilled and motivated whereas non-
key teachers do not. The latter state that active learning brought inequality within the team.
Furthermore the outcomes of students raised compared to groups who do not implement active
learning. TTC-teachers add that students are capable to applicate knowledge in practice.
7.1.1 Teachers
All interviewed key teachers state that one of the most important personal outcomes is the feeling of
being better skilled after the trainings and the implementation of active learning. They have more
knowledge about the learning styles and feel capable to differentiate by using the educational needs
of students. Due to these personal outcomes, teachers feel more committed and motivated.
Directors also experience a more motivated and committed team. This applies more to key teachers
than to non-key teachers. Non-key teachers do not experience these benefits. Their work became
more time consuming and difficult, according to them.
Furthermore, teachers confirm that the results of their students raised over the past years
and students are more on-task after implementing active learning, which is confirmed by research of
the Edukans foundation (2015). This is due to different implications of the pedagogy, according to
the teachers. First, students like active learning, because they like to experience what they are
learning. Second, there is interaction within heterogeneous groups. Students from different levels
exchange information and learn from each other. According to some teachers, this encourages the
‘low-level learners’ to be interested in learning and it is less abstract, which is more suitable for their
learning style. This increases the results of the low-level learners and the gap between them and the
higher-level students becomes smaller.
According to teachers, active learning contributes to the expression and discussion skills of
students. Students learn to express their ideas and discuss them plenary and in groups. Related is the
45
increasing confidence which students develop as a result of active learning. Teachers, directors and
TTC-teachers value this as important future skills because it makes them independent. They learn to
solve problems and issues by themselves without or with limited help of teachers or others.
According to the directors there is a feasible difference visible in these skills between the group of
students from teachers who are implementing active learning and those who are not. Those students
are more independent and better capable to explain and express their feelings and knowledge.
Observations show that in lessons of key teachers students have to present their work
plenary. Although it is mostly not spontaneous, students were capable to express themselves clearly.
In a few cases some of them even raised their hand spontaneously, because they wanted to present
their work. In those lessons, students were working independently on group assignments and solved
questions amongst each other without or with limited consultation of the teacher. This is in contrast
to lessons of non-key teachers and some observed key teachers where there is rarely interaction.
7.1.2 TTC-Teachers
TTC-teachers add that an important outcome of active learning is the practical application of
knowledge. Previously, students only received (abstract) knowledge that they did not know how to
apply in real life situations. Active learning ensures that students know, for example, how to measure
a meter and why it is important for them to master this knowledge. Furthermore, TTC-teachers state
that active learning makes students independent, because they can generate and search for their
own resources to develop their knowledge.
7.1.3 Directors
The outcomes mentioned by directors correspond with what teachers state. They add that they have
seen a decrease in drop-out rates of students. This is, according to them, related to increased school
results of students. When students perform well, parents tend to let their children attend school. If
not, students often drop-out and start working.
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One of the directors states that before the implementation of active learning, they were the
worst performing school in the city. After implementing active learning and intensive schooling of
their students to let them catch up with the required level, they became the best performing school
in the city. He stated that this is one of the outcomes of the implementation of active learning. It is
not clear if this is really due to active learning since they had a change of board and started with
schooling on Saturdays. Furthermore, the community established a pedagogical centre for the
students of this school with a library and computers with internet access. This could also be an
explanation of the increased performance.
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8. Implementation of Active Learning in Ethiopian Classrooms
8.1 Implementation Profiles
This section focuses on the implementation of active learning inside and outside the classroom.
Furthermore, implementation challenges are explained and this chapter concludes with the cultural
relevance of active learning for Ethiopia. Remarkable in this section are the discrepancies between
what the teachers elaborate on how they implement active learning and what is seen of it in
practice. Teachers are able to perfectly explain how to implement active learning but in practice,
they are not capable to translate their lessons into active learning.
8.1.1 Strategies of Implementation
This sub-section is classified by the used implementation strategies, starting with how teachers are
trained and implement active learning based on these trainings, followed by community and finally
through the curriculum.
8.1.1.1 Implementation after Teacher Training
Teachers and directors received trainings whereafter they implemented active learning in their
classroom practices. Active learning was introduced at the participating schools by a collaboration
between Edukans and DEC as part of the BEQUIP-program. DEC started with the training of a
selected group of (TTC-)teachers and directors. Teachers were trained on how to implement active
learning inside and outside the classroom, for example about how to apply work forms, how teaching
tools can be used, learning styles, teaching styles, differences between traditional teaching methods
and active learning, and the usage of lesson plans. Teachers were and are still being trained by
experts of DEC and Edukans. After the trainings of DEC, a follow-up program takes place twice a year,
after which teachers receive feedback from DEC . Also the Ethiopian government is providing
trainings on active learning. According to the interviewed teachers, those trainings are only
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theoretical without any practical examples. During the interviews and observations a variety of
activities derived from the DEC-trainings were noticed.
To start with, teachers prepared their lessons according to the lesson-plan-format they
received during the DEC-trainings. The lesson plans were structured, started with an introduction,
instruction, working independently or in groups, group discussion and evaluation. Differentiation in
ability levels was included in the format whereby teachers had to prepare their lessons in three
levels. To reach differentiation in the lessons, teachers have divided their students into three ability
groups at the beginning of the school year. On the basis of these lesson plans teachers chose work
forms and they apply and design work sheets for each ability group. The observations and interviews
have shown that teachers at least try to hold on to the lesson plans. In practice the majority of the
observed instructions did not contain any differentiation on ability level. Teachers gave a one-way
instruction which means that they talk and the students listen without any interaction. However, the
observations have shown a few exceptions of (only) key teachers who involved students in their
instructions. They asked questions of higher order and let students respond or let them give
examples:
Teacher: ‘Who can give me an example when I use subtractions?’
Student: ‘When I go to the market and buy oranges.’
Teacher: ‘Very good. How do you use them?’
Student: ‘When I pay too much Birr. I need to get back the money and I subtract.’
(Teacher: Male, key teacher, grade 8, student: female)
Teachers prepared different kinds of educational materials. Most common were worksheets,
pictures, questions, games and texts (in the study books) but also small stones which served as
counting-tool for additions and subtractions. Teachers are trained in how to implement this in the
context of active learning. In practice, worksheets were most commonly used. According to the
teachers worksheets are easy to prepare and to implement, due to the limited access to educational
materials. It is an effective tool to let students be on task when they work in groups and to adjust
exercises to the ability level of students. By using this, each student is involved, as teachers state.
49
Observations have shown that certainly not all students were on task while working on worksheets.
This is also confirmed by the interviewed students. They state that in practice the same students
always carry out the exercise, whilst the others are just passively listening and copy the answers from
peers. There is a discrepancy between what teachers think they reach and what is actually reached; a
few are doing the exercise.
To make a connection between the lessons and real life-situations, pictures, drawings, maps
and other concrete materials are used, as teachers state. It is implemented to make lessons less
abstract and to satisfy the educational needs of the students. In practice the observations and
interviews show that teachers were not accustomed to teach using concrete materials. Instead, a
one-way lecture occured. The only existing interaction was when the teacher (key teacher) asked a
question and students answer in chorus:
The teacher shows a flower to the students
Teacher: ‘A flower has leaves and a pistil. Repeat’
Students: ‘A flower has leaves and a pistil.’
Teacher: ‘Again.’
‘A flower has leaves and a pistil.’
(Teacher: Male, key teacher, grade 7)
The flower, in this example, was not used as educational tool to let the students learn by
experiencing, which was one of the objectives of the lesson. It was a visual example of a
flower but in the end, students did probably not know what the leaves and the pistil look like.
This kind of situations occurred several times during the observations. One of the TTC-
teachers explained that teachers often lapse into their old habits of teaching the teacher-
centred way. They know that these kinds of lessons do not contain active learning, but at the
same time they do not know how to change the instruction into it. The observations show
that a few teachers did actually knew how to translate these sorts of situations into active
learning. For example, they showed a butterfly in the sub-groups in the class while the rest of
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the students were carrying out an exercise about this topic. The teacher explained, asked
critical questions in sub-groups and let the students ask questions. Afterwards the students
made drawings of the butterfly based on what they have observed.
One of the TTC-teacher explained that this rarely occurs. The majority of the teachers
only know how to implement active learning by implementing worksheets or when they use
an exact example of the lesson which was carried out during the trainings. The students
remain in their passive roles, unless the teachers think they are active. Due to a lack of
knowledge and experience, teachers lapse back into their old habits of teaching in a teacher-
centred way, as TTC-teachers state. One of the TTC-teachers described the ability of teachers
to implement active learning by the following metaphor:
‘It is like learning how to drive a bicycle but you didn’t practice how to cycle. It doesn’t mean
that you can drive a bicycle because you are only told how to do it.’
(TTC-teacher, male)
Teachers practice and are followed up by DEC but still the observations show that teachers
find it difficult to translate their lessons into active learning lessons.
Besides the practical implementations, teachers also learn how to create a safe
learning environment. Methods like clapping and giving compliments are used often.
According to teachers, confident students feel more free to participate in the lessons. The
observations also demonstrated that the teachers put a lot of effort in encouraging students
and creating a safe learning environment by giving compliments and making students feel
that they can make mistakes without fear. This idea is shared by almost all interviewed
teachers.
Finally, the observations and interviews confirmed that teachers work with
heterogeneous ability groups. Each group exists of six students with different ability levels.
This makes, according to teachers, the transferal of knowledge between different ability
levels easier. The interviews with students and the observations have shown that in practice
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the fast learners are carrying out the exercises and the slow learners copy the answers. So, in
practice there barely is a transfer of learning.
Furthermore, working individually (on a worksheet or assignment) is rarely observed during
the observations. Students were almost always working together or in groups. They were only
working individually when writing texts from the board into their books.
Also the training of the management has an important role in the implementation of active
learning in the way of motivating teachers, providing educational materials and creating
opportunities to participate in trainings. However, it is the intention of DEC and Edukans that key
teachers train non-key teachers in carrying out active learning, interviews show that the majority of
the managements of the involved schools do not or rarely organize such trainings.
Finally, in some cases active learning was implemented, or at least patches of it, by a few key
teachers. The interviewed Edukans volunteers all confirmed that active learning is often
implemented as being a target to reach in each lesson instead of a tool to improve the quality of
education. They mean that active learning is often implemented by teachers because they have to
unless it might not be suitable for the subject matter. In those cases teacher are driven to implement
it by what is expected and not by what is suitable. Teachers are too focused on the implementation
of active learning and miss the focus on why they are implementing it. According to this group a
different mindset is needed in a way that teachers first focus on why they are implementing it.
8.1.1.2 Through Community Involvement
When implementing active learning, teachers and directors also involve the community by organizing
meetings with parents. The schools choose influential community members who are informed about
teaching methods and other school plans. This is crucial for the participation of the students in the
lessons, according to the participants. If parents do not support the school plans, neither do
students. Some of the involved teachers maintain written conversations with parents in the writing
books of the students about the performance and behaviour of students. At their turn the
community supports the schools with educational materials. Active learning requires a lot of
52
materials and financial resources, which cannot be afforded by schools themselves. Almost all
teachers argue that involvement of the community is indispensable for teaching and the
implementation of active learning. It is like a “symbiotic relation”: one cannot exist without the
other. The community ensures (financial) recourses and other requirement, whilst the school ensures
quality education for the children. In one case, the community has built a pedagogic centre with a
library, computer centre and a place where activities and meetings are organized. Teachers, directors
and TTC-teachers stateed that for this reason it is important to include community involvement into
the active learning policy.
8.1.1.3 Through the Curriculum
Another important stakeholder in the

Picture 3: Exercise book English grade 7
implementation of active learning is the
curriculum. Due to the language barrier, only
the study books for English are analysed. It
shows that the English curriculum supports
active learning actively by different exercises. Most common is to let students discuss with each
other to provoke
interaction, as picture 1
shows. Besides, the
curriculum tries to make
the exercises more
attractive for students to
provide little games
(picture 2). Finally, it
Picture 2: Exercise book English grade 7 uses meaningful Picture 1: Exercise book English grade 3
examples to activate knowledge and interest of the students (picture 3).
53
Teachers state that the curriculum has an important role in the implementation, because
teachers guides give practical examples on how to make lessons active. They state that this is
necessary for them to have concrete examples of ‘how’ and ‘what’. Also TTC-teachers state that this
is needed, because, especially non key-teachers, will not implement active learning anyway due to
their lack of knowledge. Not all curricula support active learning according to TTC-teachers. In those
cases the teacher has to translate it into active learning activities themselves.
8.2 Implementation Challenges
The main challenges teachers face while implementing active learning are the shortage of materials
and the limited access to resources like (scientific) literature and practical guides about the
implementation of active learning, but also teachers guides. Furthermore class size, age difference,
culture, motivation and knowledge and continuity causes problems with the implementation of
active learning. Especially the cultural background is hard to cope with for teachers. As mentioned in
the section on the theoretical framework, children in Ethiopia are not used to speaking up to grown-
ups. This hinders the implementation, because it is based on interaction and active involvement.
8.2.1 Materials
Limited access to teaching materials is the most often mentioned challenge teachers face. It hinders
them to implement active learning. It varies from stationary, like pens and writing books to lab
materials for subjects as physics and chemistry. Mostly mentioned is the lack of books and teacher-
guides. Teachers need teacher-guides to translate the curriculum into active learning. Directors
mention that the lack of materials is mostly caused by a shortage of budget. TTC-teachers confirm
that the limited access to materials is a problem in primary education. Observations confirm that the
lack of materials applies for all schools but especially for those schools who are not actively involving
the community. A few schools have nothing more than classrooms, a blackboard, a few desks and an
office. No teaching materials are available. In those cases, the implementation of active learning is
difficult and challenging. Teachers try to solve the problem by using self-made drawings, but in some
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cases theses are far from reality. A TTC-teacher explained what the limited access to materials means
in his lessons:
‘When I am explaining about mixing colours, for example primary colours, I need to show the
mixing process and which colour derives. This is impossible without the needed materials like
paint. How can students experience this?’
(TTC-Teacher, male)
The shortage of student books is a second challenge for teachers. The observations confirm
that in none of the observed lessons all students had a student book. In most cases students had to
share two books between six or eight students. Teachers and TTC-teachers state that due to this
students are easily distracted which make them off-task. Besides, it is challenging for students to do
their homework when they do not have books. The result is that they lag behind which has many
implications till they drop-out.
Finally, lack of available seats for students is discussed by all participants as an important
challenge. Some students are sitting on the ground or too many sharing a desk, which distracts them
from doing their work. In addition, active learning promotes the use of different learning and
teaching methods, which implies different seating arrangements for pair or group work. However,
the current seating arrangement does not allow for such flexibility. In many classrooms, students are
observed crammed together at uncomfortable desks.
Some of the involved schools try to fight this challenge by investing in a close relationship
with the community. Observations confirmed that schools which maintain a close relationship with
the community do not or to a lesser extent suffer from lack of materials. The community provides
extra learning materials, seating arrangements or even school buildings or computers. Directors
confirmed that the community is essential to fill the financial gap schools have.
8.2.2 Class size and Age
Class size is also an often discussed challenge by participants. The numbers of students in one
classroom varies between 36 and 100. Large classes arise due to transfers of teachers whereby two
55
or more classes need to put together. Teachers state that they find it difficult to follow the students
in these situations. They cannot move around and give feedback on the work. Observations show
that teachers struggle with it, however a few teachers manage to follow the students anyway,
despite the class size. They reserve more time in their lesson-plans to walk around and to give
feedback. This only happens in classrooms where all students sit behind desks. Teachers mentioned
that it is impossible to form groups, present group assignments or discuss. Observations confirmed
that in huge classes, the majority of the students are off-task and it gets chaotic when they are
working together. In those cases a teacher-centred approach is more effective, according to the
teachers.
A second problem is the age and level difference between students. Some students have had
preschool where they have learned the basics of counting and reading and have a lead on the rest
who started their school career in grade one. Teachers have to deal with a difference in schooling
level and history. Teachers mention that students who attended preschool are faster bored and
distracted from work. Besides, there are children and adolescents in one classrooms. It is difficult to
make education relevant for both age groups. Observations have shown that in practice adolescents
know more about certain topics and need another education style then the youngsters. The result is
that they get bored and demotivated.
Also students confirm that level and age hinder the implementation of active learning.
Especially students from poor families do not have continuity in going to school due to a lack of
financial resources or the priority of schooling by their parents. Those students fall behind and
cannot come along with their peer students. The result is that they do not participate in group
exercises and copy exercises from peer students. Often, they have a negative attitude towards active
learning. This is considered as irritating for those who want to participate in the lessons.
Again schools which closely involve the community have extra financial resources to realize
additional lessons for those students who fall behind or suffer from a knowledge gap. Observations
56
confirm that those schools have a better average student performance and a lower drop-out rate
compared to schools who do not have such relationships with the community.
8.2.3 Culture and Background
The most complicated challenge teachers face is the attitude of students, parents and communities
towards education and active learning, caused by their background and culture. To start with, there
is a difference between the acceptance of education of students who come from rural areas and
those from the cities. Students from rural areas, mostly poor, are less open to active learning. They
are raised in a more traditional environment and are accustomed to and prefer traditional education,
and refuse to participate actively in the lessons. This is an important challenge for teachers, because
cultural background holds students back from participating. Students have learned at home that it is
impolite to talk to grown-ups. When a child talks and argues to or with a grown-up, they are taken as
‘stupid’ and is perceived as impolite. Active learning is built on the opposite; interaction with
teachers and students. This causes friction and teachers struggle with it because students are afraid
to respond. TTC-teacher state that the implemented active learning policy is not aligned with the
Ethiopian culture. They explain that the Ethiopian culture is an introvert society and active learning is
an approach for extrovert societies:
‘…it (active learning) should be sometimes be more aligned to the culture. We are a very
inward society, we are not an outward society. So we should design an active learning
method that should Africans, because Africans are a very collective society. They are afraid
to speak when many people are around. This is from the early childhood their experiences.
Our active learning methods should consider this.’
(TTC-teacher, male)
As one of the TTC-teachers stated, active learning is derived from a different culture. It is,
according to him, impossible to implement it in another society without framing it to the culture.
More research is needed before the implementation of such pedagogies as active learning.
Also students argue that they notice a difference in attitude towards active learning between
students. Some students are struggling with the interactive elements of active learning. They are not
57
used to discuss with grown-ups or have low self-confidence whereby they do not participate at all.
They are shy due to their earlier mentioned traditions.
A second related challenge is the difference in how boys and girls are raised. Boys are more
willing to participate than girls. Girls behave more shy and hesitant. TTC-teachers explained that girls
are not expected to be schooled and have to work at home and be obedient to men. This causes that
girls behave different than boys inside the classroom. The enrolment of girls in education rises but
they are still in the minority. This is, according to a sociologist, a sign that the society is changing and
also the attitude towards education. This offers opportunities for the acceptance of active learning in
the future. TTC-teachers confirmed this but there is still a long way to go towards acceptance and
openness on learner-centred teaching methods.
8.2.4 Motivation and Knowledge of Teachers
Related to the previous paragraph, is the extent to which teachers feel comfortable to receive
feedback on their teaching. Part of the trainings and follow ups is receiving feedback from peer-
teachers or experts of DEC. Teachers state that they do not feel comfortable with giving and
receiving feedback. This affects their motivation and willingness to allow peer-teachers into their
lessons which is a key-principle of the DEC-trainings. Teachers relate this to their societal rules. They
are not used to giving and receiving feedback and consider it as impolite to be critical about
someone’s actions. TTC-teachers and also teachers, when asked off the record, confirm that
observations and feedback-moments between teachers rarely take place because they do not feel
comfortable doing this.
The second factor which influences the motivation of teachers is inadequate trainings. The
trainings are sufficient for a considerable minority to implement active learning. The majority
experience a lack of knowledge about or experience with implementing active learning and often
they lapse back into traditional teaching methods. Teachers argued that they received trainings twice
a year but this is insufficient. Teachers state they need more training to get a real understanding of
how active learning should be implemented.
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Also the difference in trained teachers is an influencing factor. Key teachers are supported to
attend trainings while non-key teachers are not due to a lack of budget. This causes inequality within
the team. One of the non-key teachers argued that they are perceived as less capable by the board
and key teachers. Due to the absence of (peer-) training for non-key teachers, the knowledge gap
within the teachers increases. This has a very demotivating effect on the implementation of active
learning as some teachers argued.
Moreover, active learning is time consuming, especially the preparations of the lessons.
Teachers in Ethiopia only get paid for the actual time they are teaching and not the additional time
they spend to prepare. Some of the interviewed teachers are demotivated because they invest a lot
of free time in the preparation of their lessons. Some teachers have additional jobs and do not have
enough time to prepare their lessons properly.
8.2.5 Training and Continuity
Elaborating on the previous section, teachers perceive the continuity of active learning as one of the
major challenges. It is challenging that active learning is not broadly implemented throughout the
school, because not all teachers have the knowledge and skills to implement it. This is confusing for
students. In one lesson they have to participate and to be involved in active learning and in the
following lessons they have to sit and listen. It is also challenging for teachers, because they have to
invest a lot of effort and time in the participation of students. TTC-teachers also confirm that this is a
problem.
To conclude with, one of the other challenges key teachers face is that all training tools and
materials are in English. Some of the participants do not even speak English. It is difficult to improve
their knowledge through learning material which are not in their language.
8.3 Cultural Relevance of Active Learning
In general, participants argue that active learning is relevant in the Ethiopian context providing that it
will be aligned with the Ethiopian culture. For example, different TTC-teachers mentioned that this is
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caused by the fact that the policy originally was developed in ‘Western societies’, as they named it,
where community life has a less important role and children are used to having discussions with
teachers and grown-ups. Moreover, as earlier stated, the community involvement which is very
important in Ethiopia is not represented in the active learning policy. The active learning policy which
is implemented in its current form is not suitable for the Ethiopian context.
To solve this problem there are two important changes needed. First, the Ethiopian society
needs to change and that process has already started. Communities, parents and teachers have to
teach the children to be critical human beings and to develop self-confidence as TTC-teachers
argued. In the end this is a parents’ responsibility. To effectuate this, parents need to change their
views on nurturing. As a result, this can only be changed by societal impact, views and rules, and in
the end, through education.
On the side of the policy of active learning one very important change is needed. The active
learning policy has to be aligned with the Ethiopian culture. One of the participants mentioned that it
is impossible to implement policy from one culture to another without research on the cultural
differences. Research carried out in advance could forestall implementation problems at the moment
of implementation, as this participant argued. He mentioned that every implementation starts with a
context research and analysis. Research on the cultural differences after the implementation is not
ideal but can ensure changes in the policy. Changes which are more aligned with the Ethiopian
context, culture and society. The main problem is, he addressed, that Ethiopia is a ‘collective’ but
inward society, while the active learning policy is based on an outward individual society. This causes
fundamental contradictions. In addition, Ethiopia is a vast country with many sub-cultures. Even
within the different parts of the country research is needed, because there is a significant difference
between areas. Cities are mostly more developed than rural areas.
Is it a relevant approach? The majority says ‘yes’ because it brings change and improvement
of education. It brings new insights and rethinking of the educational policy (and society). Is it
suitable? The next paragraph will answer that question.
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9. Conclusion
Conspicuous in this research is that there are three major challenges which have a hindering effect
on the implementation of active learning; practical limitations, limited knowledge and insufficient
training, and cultural rules. Additionally, there are discrepancies between what teachers say they do
and what is observed in practice. This has been researched through unstructured interviews with
teachers, directors, TTC-teachers and through observations. This shows that active learning in its
current form is not aligned with the Ethiopian cultural and social context. Besides, teachers show a
lack of ownership over the policy. This concluding section explains these findings and link them with
broader theories. The main research question will be answered, recommendation will be made and
suggestions for further research will be given.
9.1 Main Findings
The research shows that there are different factors which make the implementation of active
learning challenging. Most frequently mentioned is the shortage of educational materials, for
example the presence of student books and teacher guides. Active learning requires concrete
materials to make the subject matter meaningful to the students and create the opportunity to
connect the subject matter with real-life situations. This is often caused by a lack of budget of the
schools. The result is that students are off task, because the subject matter is too abstract or
teachers lapse back into the teacher centred approach. Not only budget is a challenge, as class size is
also often mentioned. It is impossible to follow students, form groups, conduct discussions,
differentiate or give presentations with high numbers of students. The problem of class size and the
limitation of available materials occur in different sub-Saharan countries and in developing countries
outside this area. In several studies this is mentioned as a limitation that has an important negative
influence on the implementation of qualitative good education (Altinyelken, 2010; Schweisfurth,
2011; Sriprakash, 2010; Vavrus, 2009). Both these mentioned studies took place in other sub-Saharan
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countries and this research shows that the reduction of class size and the access to educational
materials are one of the conditions to deliver quality education.
Besides these practical challenges, continuity and training also hinder the implementation of
active learning. Not all teachers are well trained in implementing active learning. Key teachers have
received training but non-key teachers did not. This causes inequality within the teaching teams
which has a negative influence on the motivation of non-key teachers. Also the lack of continuity and
adequacy of the trainings hinder the implementation of active learning. Within one school, a few
teachers implement active learning, or parts of it, and the majority does not. This is confusing for
students which results in not participating in the lessons or even rejection of active learning. Finally,
active learning is time consuming because teachers need to prepare their lessons carefully in
advance. Bennell & Akyeampong (2007) argue that teachers in many other sub-Saharan countries
only get paid for the time they are teaching and not for the preparation of lessons. Teachers have to
find additional jobs and this has an undermining effect on the motivation. The same applies for the
difference in capacity between key teachers and non-key teachers. This difference ensures lower job
expectations of non-key teachers which has also an undermining effect on their motivation to
implement active learning. Regarding key teachers, their limited knowledge about active learning
ensures a lack of support, ownership and motivation to implement active learning in the way it is
intended in the policy (Bennell & Akyeampong, 2007).
Finally, social and cultural rules have a considerable influence on the implementation of
active learning. To start with, students are not always willing to participate in the lessons and to
interact with the teacher because they are raised by the idea that talking to a grown up is impolite
which Serbessa (2006) confirms. Active learning is originated in Western societies with a more
individualistic approach on education, whereas in Ethiopia it is more collective as TTC-teachers
argued and different studies endorse (Preece, 2013; Serbessa, 2006). This research shows that
educational policy, like active learning, should evolve from the culture of the country of
implementation. In its current form, active learning is not aligned with the Ethiopian culture and
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society, because it requires interaction between student and teacher which is considered by the
participants as not suitable for the Ethiopian context. One of the problems teachers face is that
students are hesitant to participate in the lessons due to cultural rules. Policy makers need to be
aware of local circumstances and contextual factors, like culture, social rules or practical limitation,
that might influence the implementation. The involvement of local expertise can be helpful to get a
better understanding of the complexity of certain educational contexts. One on one implementation
of active learning from one culture into another does not work, nor for the Ethiopian context which is
confirmed by different studies (Bermingham, 2011; Preece, 2013; Tabulawa, 2003).
Conspicuous in this research is that there is a discrepancy noticed between what teachers
say they do and what is observed in practice. Teachers and other participants were able to tell how
they view active learning and how they implement it. They were able to describe how active learning
should be implemented, the ideal situation. The practice differed considerably from how teachers
described their lessons. A few key teachers were able to realize active learning trough differentiation,
well-facilitated discussions, working together-sessions and translate the subject matter into real-life
situations. In practice the majority of both key teachers and non-key teachers often lapse back into
mass-answering and a teacher-centred methods. Generally, the majority has very limited and only
theoretical knowledge about active learning and does not know how to translate it into practice,
which is also argued by Serbessa (2006).
The question that arises is how is it possible that practices differ considerably from what
participants say they do? The answer to this question can be sought in the environmental, social and
cultural circumstances. Teachers have limited knowledge about active learning and how to
implement it. Practice shows that they have too little practical experience to implement it in a
qualitative good way. The combination of these two elements, the lack of teaching materials and the
sometimes high number of students make that teachers lose motivation and/or lapse back into their
deeply ingrained traditional teaching methods as Tabulawa (1997) and Serbessa (2006) argue.
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Second, the difference between what teachers say they do and what they actually
implement can be explained by social desirable answers they probably have given during the
research. For the implementation of active learning, which is part of the BEQUIP-program, the
participants are highly dependent on funding. As a researcher I was and am connected to the
University of Amsterdam which is, together with Edukans, supporting the implementation of active
learning in the researched schools. Unless I emphasised my independent position time after time,
teachers could probably not see me as an independent researcher. Moreover, I travelled with a staff
member of DEC. Despite the trustful relationship he had with many teachers, his presence could
have had an influence on how participants responded to my, sometimes critical, questions. In
addition on this explanation, the positive outcomes of the implementation of active learning
mentioned by teachers could also be questionable, since it is poorly implemented. It could be that
participants were talking about the perceived ideal outcomes or about the outcomes they learned
active learning could have, provided that it is well implemented.
Third, the answer can be sought on the global level of educational policy transfer. Steiner-
Kahmsi (2011) argues in different case studies that most educational systems are dependent on loans
or funds from external aid organisations. Specifically certain educational strategies, like active
learning, can only be implemented by funding and are only made available if certain conditions,
agendas and timeframes of the funders are met. Those implemented educational strategies are often
the preferences of funders and originate from their ‘home’ countries which is confirmed by different
studies (Edwards Jr., 2012; Steiner-Kahmsi, 2011; Tota, 2014). The same applies for the conclusion of
this research. The involved schools are depended on the funds, expertise and training they receive
from DEC and Edukans to make active learning possible. This is a factor which cannot be left out of
consideration and might explain why there is a discrepancy between what teachers describe they do
and what is actually visible in practice. They do not want to lose funding by being too critical about
the implementation of active learning. Some participants were able to express critical notes,
64
especially TTC-teachers which was of great value for a reliable research. Teachers, though, were
rarely critical.
The participants were generally able to describe what active learning means and pretend
ownership over the policy. The discrepancy between what they say they do and what is observed in
practice shows a lack of ownership over the active learning policy by teachers. The differences are
caused by a lack of knowledge and experience but also by (practical) issues of the local context which
hinders the implementation process. As long as the local conditions, experiences and expertise are
not taken into account in the designing and implementation process of educational policy and as long
the funders agenda is leading in the implementation process, ownership is hard to realize and
discrepancies will exist as Higgins & Rwanyange (2010) argue. These are all arguments which address
the conclusion of this research that active learning in its current form, is not suitable for the Ethiopian
context. More time and effort is needed to transform the policy into a suitable approach.
9.2 Recommendations
The first recommendation which addresses the conclusion of this research is given by Tabulawa
(2003) who argues that as long as active learning is implemented as a proved universalized approach
on education, local indigenous pedagogies and knowledge are marginalized and the ‘potential’ of
these pedagogies are not researched yet (p. 22). The first step that has to be taken is recognizing
local indigenous approaches on education or at least take them into account with the development
and implementation of educational pedagogies originated from the Western world. It should be
investigated if these approaches of education complement each other in a way. Education is a matter
of specific contexts from the past and the present. The next sub-sections are recommendations for
the researched context in Jimma and Bedele.
9.2.1 Reconsideration of the Active Learning Policy
The research shows that social and cultural rules, and practical limitations are one of the challenges
which hinders the implementation of active learning on the researched schools. To overcome this, a
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reconsideration of the already implemented policy is needed whereby these challenges are closely
examined and serve as starting point. It seems that this has not, or at least minimal, been taken into
consideration when the implementation process of active learning started in Jimma and Bedele. The
research shows that TTC-teachers were able to express critical notes and underpin them with
broader issues regarding the Ethiopian society. It is recommendable to involve this group as ‘experts
of local primary education’ as also Tabulawa (2003) suggests. They master the indigenous
approaches on education and could connect them with the principles of active learning and broader
theories.
9.2.2 Teacher Training
Regarding teacher training three recommendations will be made. The first is, building on the
previous recommendation, that the teacher training should also focus on how teachers should cope
with on one hand progressive pedagogies and on the other hand the cultural and social rules which
causes the implementation challenges as is suggested by Preece (2013) and Tabulawa (1997). The
research shows that teachers struggle with their position between the progressive active learning
pedagogy and students who refuse to participate in the lessons due to (traditional) social rules.
Training could contribute to how teachers make bridges between these contradicting factors.
The second recommendation regards the training of non-key teachers which are carried out
by key teachers. The research shows that these trainings are insufficient and are very occasionally
taking place. Moreover, part of the key teachers have even not enough knowledge and capacity to
implement active learning their selves. It is recommendable to train all teachers in the researched
schools to provide quality training for all. It would also have a positive effect on the continuity for
students and to prevent inequality within the schools. This has possibly positive effects on job
expectations, commitment and motivation of non-key teachers as Bennell & Akyeampong (2007)
suggest.
The discrepancy between what teachers tell they do and what they actually carry out is
caused by the fact that they have limited knowledge about how active learning should be
66
implemented. The majority of the teacher were able to describe the ideal situation. This means that
more training is needed on how to translate the theory into class practices.
Besides, some of the interviewees pointed that the level of English is low of majority of the
teachers whereby they do partly understand the content of the training materials. It would be is
necessary to translate training materials into the local languages wherefore they could understand
the full content.
9.2.3 Ownership over the Policy
Investment in ownership of the policy by teachers is necessary. This can be reached by involving
teachers in designing and implementation processes of the active learning policy to make them feel
owner of what they implement in the classrooms as Higgins & Rwanyange (2010) argue. Therefore, it
is recommendable to involve a few of the teachers who are able to implement active learning in a
successful way as ‘experts of practice’. They know the practice and have undergone the process of
making active learning to a success with all the challenges they faced.
Moreover, active learning requires time for preparation which is included in the tasks of the
involved teachers but is not included in their salary. They only get paid for the actual time of
teaching. Since teachers need more preparation time, this is not appropriate anymore. Moreover, it
has an impact on their motivation and commitment to implement active learning in a successful way.
To ensure the quality of the implementation of active learning, extension of paid working hours is
needed.
9.3 Further Research
 It would be interesting to research the role and attitude of parents and communities towards
active learning in combination with their social and cultural rules. This group has an
important influence on the implementation process but is not researched for the purpose of
this research. It would be interesting to verify whether the conclusions which are made in
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this research about how children are raised are correct and what the impact is on the
implementation of active learning.
 Teachers mentioned that one of the outcomes of active learning is the improvement of
future skills of students. Active learning provokes practical application of knowledge and
expression skills. It would be interesting to research if active learning in Ethiopia really
contributes to the development of these skills. This research shows how it is valued, but is it
of value in an inward society as Ethiopia? Is there room for an extrovert people in an
‘introvert’ society, as one of the TTC-teachers named it, and what will be the impact of it? Is
active learning of value for the Ethiopian society?
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Verspoor, A. (1989). Improving the Quality of Education in Developing Countries. World Bank
Discussion Papers, No. WDP 53. The World Bank, Washington D.C.
Verspoor, A. (2008). At the Crossroads: Choices for Secondary Education in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Retrieved from:
http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTAFRREGTOPEDUCATION/Resources/444659-
1210786813450/Secondary_Education_At_the_Crossroads.pdf
Volman, M. (2006). Het ‘nieuwe leren’: Oplossing of Nieuw Probleem? Pedagogiek, 26, 1, 14-25.
World Bank (2015). Ethiopia Overview. Accessed May 2015. Retrieved from:
http://www.worldbank.org/en/country/ethiopia/overview#3
73
Apendix
Apendix 1: Interviews
Teachers
1. Background questions
Educational level?
Age?
1. For how long are you teaching in primary education?
2. Which grade are you teaching?
3. What is the number of students you teach in your class?
2. Perceptions on active learning
4. What is active learning for you? How would you define it?
5. In what ways do you think it can improve student learning?
6. What outcomes did you expect in advance?
(7. Do you think the school management supports active learning as well?)
(8. Do you think other teachers will also be supportive of active learning?)
- Are all teachers using it?
3. Classroom practices/implementation
9. Can you describe me an usual lesson? How do you teach? How are the lessons ordered?
10. Which materials are you using in your lessons?
11. Are the students divided in groups? If yes, based on what are they formed?
12. Do the curricular materials address the needs of the students?
74
13. How do you practice active learning? What do you do differently?
- What is your role as a teacher?
- What is the role of the students? (Listening and noting or responding to questions
and participation?)
 Communication, behavior, difference boys and girls etc.
14. How do you encourage participation of students in the lessons? Do you find it
important?
15. How would you describe the reaction of students on active learning? Do you think they
like it? Why would they?
- Are they hazardous to speak out loud or collaborate with classmates, or do they
communicate freely in the classes and with their classmates?
16. What outcomes do you notice as result of active learning?
17. Are learning materials available/affordable for all students?
18. What does the implementation of active learning mean for future developments in
Ethiopia?
- Do students learn more? Do student participate more?
4. Training
19. What kind of training did you receive before implementing it in your classes?
- How many days? Format and so on?
20. Were you pleased with the training?
21. Were there things that missed during the training?
22. After the training, did you feel that you were prepared to implement it?
75
23. When you started with using active learning, did you feel comfortable with it?
24. Is/was active learning corresponding with the way you prefer to teach?
25. Are you feeling now better skilled when you use active learning?
26. Do you think you have sufficient knowledge to carry out active learning (after the
trainings)?
5. Suggestions:
27. If you were asked to improve active learning, how would you do it? What aspects of it
would you change?
28. In Uganda AL is not always suitable for the cultural pedagogical context where children
live in (due to how they are raised etc.) Do you encounter similar problems in Ethiopia?
What is a more cultural relevant policy in de Ethiopian pedagogical context?
29. If you could change anything in active learning or in the policy. What would it be?
76
Management
1. Background:
1. What is your educational background and work experience as a director/teacher?
2. For how long have you been working in this function (at this school)?
3. Could you tell me something about the background of the students at this school (in
general)?
4. How did you get involved in this project of active learning?
2. Perceptions
5. How would you define active learning?
6. Do you think active learning helps the teachers with being a better skilled teacher?
3. Implementaiton
7. How do you support the implementation of active learning?
8. What is your role in stimulating the use/implementation of active learning?
9. How do you ensure that teacher have sufficient knowledge/skills for carrying out active
learning? Are there trainings provided?
10. Which challenges/obstacles do teachers encounter with implementing active learning?
11. Who is providing learning materials/recourses for carrying out active learning?
- Are they sufficient?
12. What are the further needs of this school in carrying out active learning?
13. What does the implementation of active learning mean for future developments in
Ethiopia?
77
3. Training
14. What kind of training did you receive before implementing it in your classes?
15. Were you pleased with the training?
16. Were there things that missed during the training?
17. After the training, did the teachers feel prepared to implement it?
5. Outcomes
18. What outcomes/results do you notice resulting from active learning (for students)?
19. Do you think active learning improves the quality of education/learning?
6. Suggestions
20. If you were asked to improve active learning, how would you do it? What aspects of it
would you change?
21. In Uganda AL is not always suitable for the cultural pedagogical context where children
live in (due to how they are raised etc.) Do you encounter similar problems in Ethiopia?
What is a more cultural relevant policy in de Ethiopian pedagogical context?
23. What does active learning mean for further (educational) developments in Ethiopia?
78
NGO
1.General information
1. What is your function/role within this organization? .
2. For how long you have been working here?
2. Why active learning
3. Why (DEC) is interested in active learning?
4. Why do you think active learning is important?
5. What purpose is expected to reach with active learning in education?
- In what ways do you think it can improve learning?
6. What obstacles/challenges could be encountered by teachers in carrying out active
learning?
3. How they implement
8. What is and has been the role of this organization by implementing active learning on
primary schools?
7. Do you think all teachers are implementing active learning?
8. Which challenges/obstacles in general are envisioned by the implementation of active
learning? (By schools, NGO’s, government, etc.)
9. What was the situation at schools before active learning was implemented?
10. What is the role of the government in implementing active learning?
11. What is the role of international organizations by implementing active learning?
79
4. Support teachers and schools
12. How does the organization ensure that active learning is well implemented everywhere?
13. Who is providing resources/materials for carrying out active learning?
14. How does this organization ensure teachers and the management have sufficient
knowledge and skills for carrying out active learning?
- Are trainings provided?
15. How do you train teachers and support schools?
16. Do you think such training is sufficient?
5. Outcomes
17. What outcomes do see as a result of active learning?
6. Background
18. What are the general values with which children are raised here in Ethiopia? How
should they behave, act, talk, and behave towards adults. What is important?
19. In Uganda they experience that AL is not always suitable for the cultural pedagogical
context where children live in (due to how they are raised etc.) Do you encounter similar
problems in Ethiopia?
20. Does active learning a suitable approach of teaching if you take the Ethiopian
pedagogical and cultural context in mind?
7. Suggestions
80
22. What does active learning mean for further (educational) developments in Ethiopia?
81
Apendix 2: BEQUIP Structured Observation Scheme
De observatieschema’s zijn afkomstig uit van der Meer (2014). De schema’s zijn gebruikt in het kader van het BEQIP-project ter evaluatie van de
implementatie van actief leren op teacher trainer colleges in Ethiopië.
Teacher activities Poor Moderate Good Very good
1. Lesson planning No lesson plans Objective stated but no Objective stated and Objective clear, SMART.
clear link with activities clear. Link with activities Activities, methods &
and methods methods and evaluation evaluation carried out
according to lesson plan.
2. Attentions drawn to No connection with life of Occasionally connection Frequent connection Frequent and appropriate
real life practice students connection
3. Subject matter Frequent mistakes are Occasionally mistakes are In general subjects are Teacher shows mastery
/content observed made introduced properly of subject matter
4. Questioning and Teacher (almost) only Teacher occasionally asks Teacher frequently asks Teacher asks open
answering asks closed questions open questions (how …, open questions (how …, questions (how …, why…)
(yes –no) (true –false) why…) why…) allowing students to think
and explore subject.
5. Assessing students’ Not observed Observed occasionally Observed occasionally Observed frequently
work in the classroom using 1 method using different methods. using different methods
6. Encouraging learners’ Discouraging No specific attention Occasionally encouraging Encouraging students on
confidence observed towards students, no discouraging a regular basis, at
encouraging or individual and group level
discouraging
7. Classroom Poor organization insufficient logical mgt of Organization facilitates Responsibility for
management student tasks (e.g.: group on task behavior at learning is delegated to
work without group individual and group students. Well organized
82
assignments) level. class.

8. Concept building Very abstract Some concrete examples In general subjects and Concept building done
concepts are introduced system atica_ ly; e.g.:
in a concrete way from concrete to abstract
/ familiar to unfamiliar
Student activity Weak Moderate Good Very Good

1. Variety of learning No variation. 1 or 2 learning activities 3 or 4 learning activities More than 4 learning
activities. (besides listening and (besides listening and activities (besides listening
mass-answering) mass-answering) and mass-answering)
2. Learning activities are No connection to Weak connection to Moderate connection to Good connection to
linked objective objective objective objectives
3. Student textbook ratio 0 –25 % 26 –50 % 51 –75% 75 –100%
(check availability)
4. Active use of textbooks no usage textbooks Occasional use Frequent use Full use
5. Students work actively Not observed Observed occasionally (for Observed frequently (for 5 Actively for more than 10
with educational materials 5 minutes) to 10minutes) minutes
6. Educational resources No connection to Weak connection to Moderate connection to Good connection to
(textbooks / educational objective objective objective objective
materials) linked to
objective.
7. Participation during Only a few students There is discussion but Most of the learners are All learners are actively
'work in groups' participate only some are doing the actively involved involved
work
83
Apendix 3: Semi-structured observation questions
1. Hoe betrekt de leerkracht de leerlingen in de les?

2. Hoe beantwoorden leerlingen vragen met betrekking tot de lesstof? Spontaan/uit het hoofd geleerd
3. Is er een verschil in wie een beurt krijgt? Overwegend jongens/overwegend meisjes /geen verschil
4. Hoe is de klas ingedeeld? Homogeen/heterogeen  O.b.v. niveau/geslacht/leeftijd
5. Worden leerlingen gevraagd naar persoonlijke mening/ideeën of wordt gevraagd naar wat zij geleerd hebben?
6. Hoe communiceren leerlingen met de leerkracht? Gelijkwaardig/ongelijkwaardig
7. Hoe communiceert de leerkracht met de leerlingen? Gelijkwaardig/ongelijkwaardig
8. Wordt samenwerking/overleg met andere leerlingen aangemoedigd?
9. Worden leerlingen aangemoedigd tot samenwerken?
10. Hoe vaak stellen leerlingen spontaan vragen aan de leerkracht?
11. Wat is de aard van de vraag? (verheldering/opmerking/correctie/aanvulling)
12. Steken leerlingen spontaan hun hand op als ze een antwoord weten of geeft de leerkracht beurten?
13. Stellen de leerlingen klassikaal vragen?
14. Hoe benaderen leerlingen de leerkracht?
15. Hoe gedragen andere leerlingen zich wanneer een andere leerling klassikaal praat? 19. Hoeveel leerlingen telt de klas?
16. Wat is de sfeer in de klas? (relaxed/autoritair/chaotisch/gestructureerd)
17. Welke leermiddelen zijn er in de klas aanwezig?
18. Welke leermiddelen hebben de leerlingen zelf tot hun beschikking?
84
Appendix 4: Structured curriculum observation form
Weak Medium Moderate Good

Betekenisvol – Connectie
met real life situations?
Is de methode ontworpen
voor de specifieke context
van Ethiopië?
Stimuleren samenwerken
peers
Stimuleren actief
individueel werk – wordt
de individuele leerling
uitgedaagd actief te
werken?
Stimuleren interactie
leerkracht
Stimuleren klassikale
interactie
Wordt de student
uitgedaagd om kritisch te
denken
Hoe worden concepten
uitgelegd?
Zijn de oefeningen
uitdagend voor de
doelgroep?
Reflectief vermogen van
studenten wordt
gestimuleerd
Presentatie skills en/of
discussie skills van
studenten worden
ontwikkeld
85
Studenten worden 0 1 2 3 of meer

uitgedaagd alternatieve
informatiebronnen te
raadplegen naast het boek
Abtstract – concreet
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Hoe wordt de stof geconcretiseerd voor de leerling?
Is er spraken van enkel tekst of wordt dit afgewisseld met afbeeldingen?
Zijn er voornamelijk open of gesloten vragen?
Hoe is het hoofdstuk ingedeeld? Is er spraken van een (logische) indeling?
Is er afwisseling tussen de lessen binnen het hoofdstuk?
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Worden de doelen van het hoofdstuk duidelijk gemaakt aan de leerling?
Komt de inhoud van het hoofdstuk overeen met de het onderwerp?
Welke verschillende soort oefeningen zijn te onderscheiden in het hoofdstuk? (invul, schrijf, lees, etc.)
86

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Active Learning in Ethiopia

Implementation in the Pedagogical, Social and Cultural

Supervisor: Dr. Hülya Kosar Altinyelken

humor during the data collection process of this research.

thank her for her always positive attitude.

countries as TTC-teachers named it. It is based on an ‘extrovert’ individualistic society which

towards grown-ups and giving feedback or contradicting people is perceived as impolite. A

knowledge is used as starting point.

5.1.2.2 Group 2 ...................................................................................................................... 34

9.2.2 Teacher Training ............................................................................................................ 66

2.1 Aim and Relevance

reforms from traditional teacher-centred education into learner-centred approaches of education.

countries (Altinyelken, 2010; Serbessa, 2006).

Leyendecker, 2008; Preece, 2013).

2.2 Problem Statement

developing countries. Active learning is a learner-centred approach of education whereby students

cultural context of Ethiopia where active learning is implemented.

In Ethiopia active learning is widely implemented by many but is understood by few, as

2.3 Social and Scientific Relevance

primary education and the suitability for the Ethiopian context.

2.4 Research Question

places in Ethiopia are researched.

The main question this research seeks to address is:

cultural- and social context of Ethiopia?

To answer this question, five sub-questions are formulated:

1. How do teachers view active learning?

2. How is active learning implemented by teachers in primary schools?

3. Which challenges do teachers experience when implementing active learning?

4. What are the (expected) outcomes of active learning?

2.5 Research Outline

implementation of it in sub-Saharan Africa. This chapter is followed by Chapter 4 which is a section

is answered, recommendations are made as well as suggestions for further research.

cultural contexts and it concludes with the implementation challenges.

3.1 Active Learning and Learner-Centred Education

Learner-centred education, child-centred education, cooperative learning and active learning

2004). Active learning in specific is defined by Prince (2004) as followed:

activities and think about what they are doing.’ (P.1.)

The teacher-centred approach is often perceived as the opposite of learner-centred

behaviouristic approach of education is perceived as effective in situations with limited recourses or

consists without any interaction (p.129).

learners are actively involved, teachers can

maximize students’ learning process, which

is not the case with teacher-centred

methods (Dale, 1970; Edukans, 2014). In

this process the emphasis is on the

interaction between the learner and his

environment, like peers or the teacher but

outcomes when it is implemented by an experienced teacher who is knowledgeable about the

3.2 Role of the Teachers and Students

In the specific case of active learning

teachers should have the role of a

facilitator which is an important

element. The teacher in the role of

facilitator supports students when

they are learning and developing

skills like having discussions, solving

problems, working in groups and

Ireland Curriculum, 2007; Linton, Farmer & Peterson, 2014).

(Bransford, Brown & Cocking, 2000).