Mezemir Ethiopia
August 3, 2018
The
idea of writing on this topic has been kept on my table for a long while. However,
since I’m getting increasingly disorganized and leave such important issues unfinished, the commencement of
the project stayed until this day. Since, on this day, I found some time for
this activity, the scribbling has started. As to the means by which I get the input for the writing endeavor, I had planned to distribute questionnaires,
conduct focus group discussions and interviews. These, as time permits, shall
be done in the future. Let me, for the time being, share with you the ideas I
gathered through the informal talks and conversations I made.
Introducing
myself is vital at this level. I am a lecturer of English who is placed in the
third generation in the category below. Currently, I teach English and
literature courses at Debre Birhan University. I have been trying to learn
English until this time. All in all, I find it hard to comfortably express
myself in the language.
The
First Generation:
The
First generation is what came after the second Italo-Ethiopian war, 1936 - 1941. The education system, which was modeled after the British one had a keen concern in the quality of English language teaching. The pupils schooled at that time were native-like as they were trained in modern boarding schools which had quality teaching materials, expatriate teachers, testing systems and so on. Above all, they
were able to pursue higher learning abroad with ease. The books these students authored, both literary and non-literary, the
intellectual movements they started and their overall personality puts them
above the other categories of English majors. World-class authors including Tsegaye, Daniachew and Solomon are from the Imperial years.
The
Second Generation: The generation in this category comes next to the ones whose
story is narrated above. The students who completed school in the old
curriculum were selected to join higher education on strict criteria. They had
a sound knowledge of grammar and reading. As they joined universities and
colleges that demanded rigorous study and hard work, they maintained the love
for education particularly English. At the time being they are found at schools,
civil service and universities among others. The current state of the English
language in Ethiopia, even if it is grammar-centered relies on them. Whether my
generation achieved greater goals or not, it is the fruit of their mentorship
and effort. At this point, we should mention those educated at Kotebe and Addis Ababa
Univeristy. They relate about their schooling with passion and eagerness. Novels including Animal Farm, Gulliver's Travels and Great Expectations are very familiar with these guys.
The
Third Generation: Those of us who joined universities in the first rounds of
the new curriculum fall under this category. Among us, there are students who had
interest in learning in general and the English department in particular. There
is also a significant number of English majors who didn’t choose or like
English. For the sake of their survival, which is to acquire a job, they are there. However, one cannot
confidently say they hate learning. I can mention some reasons why the weakness
started. The declining quality of English language teaching in the lower
grades and high schools made the students relatively weaker than the previous
ones. The lecturers at the English departments also played their own strong and
weak roles. In big universities, they prefer to work part-time outside the universities and, as a result, give a lesser
attention to their students at public universities. Even the bright students at
the English departments get weaker and weaker throughout their stay at universities. If one witnesses how departments like Political Science handle their students, it is easy to learn that even slow learners improve their skills dramatically.
The
Fourth Generation: The generation that is at universities at this time has been categorized under this category. From the point of view of the teachers and the community,
this time is when the teaching and learning of English is in the brink of
failure. Among a class of 30 students, if you find five who chose English as
their major, you are very lucky. Some students who perform well in English and who
would otherwise intend to join the English department are assigned at other departments
because of the rules of the ministry. The burden the nation experienced because
of the previous failures is being observed now. Something should be done to
keep the relative quality of English language teaching intact. There should be a
love of such key areas as literature, writing and speaking to achieve
bigger goals in the area of English language teaching in this country.
Thank
you for reading. I look forward to hearing from you!
