What I've learned about the American and Ethiopian Educational System from my experiences of being a student in both Ethiopia and America.
As it might seem obvious, the American and Ethiopian educational systems are completely different. I can confirm this because, from the age of five to nine, I went to school in Ethiopia, which was a very different experience from when I spent 3rd grade until now in the American Educational System. Some might believe that all Ethiopian schools are poor, but that’s far from the truth. In the neighborhood I lived in when I was younger, there were plenty of private schools that were not only as good as schools in America but even better.
The private school I went to in Ethiopia, Lycée Guebre-Mariam, is a school that was primarily funded by the French government, so I can only guess that that’s why it’s a progressive school compared to other schools in Ethiopia. Like schools in America, there were many programs for students to participate in, such as coding, piano, and more. The primary language spoken was French while also learning Amharic and English. Because I learned English at Lycée, when I came to America, it was easy to learn English.
For the first time, I attended a public elementary school, Patrick Henry Elementary School. Not only was it different because it was a public school but it was also a school in America. The diversity was the same as Lycée, which was great because such a diverse school made the students be closer with one another and share their shared experiences.
Schools in Ethiopia, such as the one I went to, consisted of strict teachers, even ones that hit students with rulers. I thought it was normal until I came to America and found out that it was unusual and that if any teachers did that to any students, they would either be fined or jailed.
The Ethiopian Educational System is much harder than the American Educational System. Like I’ve mentioned before, students in Ethiopia have to learn three languages on a strict basis for their whole livelihood of being a student, unlike students in America that learn English on a strict basis but only one foreign language for a requirement of at least two years in high school. Additionally, Ethiopian students attend 8-10 periods a day while American students only attend 4-8 periods.
All in all, the American and Ethiopian educational systems have positives and negatives. Both are great in their ways, but like many other things, it just depends on which school you attend.