Managing the Ethiopian Education Systems amid Emergencies: Lessons from COVID-19 Global Crisis

Abstract

 This study, which was based on the Pragmatism research philosophy, sought to determine the extent to which the COVid-19 global pandemic had disrupted the school system in the SNNPR and the Oromia Regional States of Ethiopia. Both quantitative and qualitative data strands were collected simultaneously using an embedded research design. The surveys were completed by 268 teachers and 575 pupils in order to determine the level of disturbance and the strategies in place. In addition, 10 school principals and 10 Wereda education office heads took part in the interview. The study identified that the CoVID-19 global pandemic has significantly disrupted (F=3.76829, P<0.05) the education systems in the above two regions. The government’s policies and tactics to avert the scenario were not properly executed at the grassroots level. As a result, in order to solve such an unusual educational crisis, this study developed an integrative model incorporating system variables, administrative variables, academic variables, and student variables. Therefore, this study recommends challenging ‘reinventing the wheel’ by applying diversifying teacher training practices, improving school-level technologies, and adapting emergency responsive education policies at the school level.