Supporting the Expansion of Pre-primary Education in Ethiopia: A Collaboration between an Ethiopian and a UK Higher Education Institution

Abstract

This chapter discusses collaboration between a UK university and an Ethiopian College of Teacher Education in supporting the introduction of pre-primary schooling into the Government schools of a large Ethiopian town. The project recognised the limited effectiveness of Minority World training programmes imposed upon a Majority World context, so it was designed in full collaboration with the local community’s educators and closely linked to indigenous practices and knowledge about schooling systems and child-rearing.

The UK university ‘expert’ deliberately did not ‘manage’ or ‘control’ the Project Team of Ethiopian teachers and teacher educators but supported them in designing and implementing a programme of professional development for local pre-primary teachers, based upon a cycle of observations, workshops, feedback visits to participants’ settings and formative evaluation to shape new initiatives.

The chapter discusses the inevitable challenges and difficulties encountered, resulting from different educational perspectives, from very limited resourcing and from gender and status issues within the Team. The project, now in its second year, is having impacts upon local pre-primary schooling, and confirms the empowering effect of a collaborative and sustainable model of Minority World support for Majority World educational initiatives.

Citation

Huggins, V., Tadesse, T. and Tadesse, T. (2015), "Supporting the Expansion of Pre-primary Education in Ethiopia: A Collaboration between an Ethiopian and a UK Higher Education Institution", University Partnerships for Community and School System Development (Innovations in Higher Education Teaching and Learning, Vol. 5), Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 61-79. https://doi.org/10.1108/S2055-364120150000005004