University of Louisville ThinkIR: The University of Louisville's Institutional Repository Electronic Theses and Dissertations 8-2013 Running among thorns : perspectives on Ethiopian/United States educational experiences. Bruce Whearty 1952- University of Louisville Follow this and additional works at: https://ir.library.louisville.edu/etd Recommended Citation Whearty, Bruce 1952-, "Running among thorns : perspectives on Ethiopian/United States educational experiences." (2013). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. Paper 1553. https://doi.org/10.18297/etd/1553 This Doctoral Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by ThinkIR: The nivU ersity of Louisville's Institutional Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of ThinkIR: The nivU ersity of Louisville's Institutional Repository. This title appears here courtesy of the author, who has retained all other copyrights. For more information, please contact [email protected]. RUNNING AMONG THORNS: PERSPECTIVES ON ETHIOPIAN/UNITED STATES EDUCATIONAL EXPERIENCES By Bruce Whearty B.A., Montana State University, Billings, 1986 M.A., Montana State University, Billings, 1992 A Dissertation Submitted to the Faculty of the College of Education and Human Development of the University of Louisville in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of Middle & Secondary Education University of Louisville Louisville, Kentucky August 2013 Copyright 2013 by Bruce Whearty All rights reserved RUNNING AMONG THORNS: PERSPECTIVES ON ETHIOPIAN/UNITED STATES EDUCATIONAL EXPERIENCES By Bruce Whearty B.A., Montana State University, Billings, 1986 M.A., Montana State University, Billings, 1992 A Dissertation Approved on July 11, 2013 by the following Dissertation Committee: ________________________________________ Dissertation Director: Dr. Thomas Tretter ________________________________________ Committee member: Dr. Melissa Evans-Andris ________________________________________ Committee member: Dr. Maggie McGatha ________________________________________ Committee member: Dr. Ann Larson _______________________________________ Committee member: Dr. Samuel Stringfield ii DEDICATION With gratitude for her resilience and joy when running among thorns, I dedicate this work to my wife, Lora Lee Whearty. iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS “Books are best written in community” (Foster, 1978, p. iv), and the community that has supported me in this endeavor has literally reached around the world. I am grateful to my dissertation committee at the University of Louisville: Dr. Melissa Andris- Evans, Dr. Ann Larson, Dr. Maggie McGatha, and Dr. Sam Stringfield, for their unending patience; to my dissertation director, Dr. Thomas Tretter, for his guidance and inspiration, and to the faculty of the University of Louisville, for their dedication to teaching. I am also grateful to all those who have accompanied me informally on this very long journey: my parents for their steadfast hope and love, my son and daughters--all teachers--for their passionate engagement in long discussions about education, and the countless teachers and administrators who have helped shape my understanding and practice over the years, in Montana and Kentucky, in the South Pacific, and in Ethiopia. Finally, I am grateful to those immigrants who shared their time, their insights, and their life stories in this collection of interviews, as well as to the larger community of immigrants whom they represent. Echoing Margaret Mead when writing of her informants in Samoa, I am grateful that “Their kindness, hospitality, and courtesy made my sojourn among them a happy one; their cooperation and interest made it possible for me to pursue my investigation with peace and profit” (Mead, 2001, p. x). iv ABSTRACT RUNNING AMONG THORNS: PERSPECTIVES ON ETHIOPIAN/UNITED STATES EDUCATIONAL EXPERIENCES Bruce Whearty July 11, 2013 This dissertation is a qualitative exploration of the perspectives of Ethiopian immigrants to the United States who have educational experience in both cultures. By interviewing five respondents and asking them to reflect on the role that their education played in their acculturation to the United States, a series of case histories was developed. The case histories were analyzed using the Differentiated Multi-Dimensional Model of Acculturation to determine if they upheld the two predictions made by this model: 1) acculturation for any particular individual proceeds independently at different rates across three different dimensions: language, behavior, and cultural identity; and 2) acculturation rates and patterns between individuals across these three dimensions differ. Chapter One summarizes the purpose, significance, and structure of the dissertation, introduces the research questions, and defines significant terms. Chapter Two, the literature review, consists of three parts. First, there is an extensive review of Ethiopian educational history. This section explores in some depth the six strands that comprise that history, their interaction with each other, and their impacts upon three ‘troubling topics’: the role of women, ethnic identity, and slavery. Second, for comparison purposes, there is a much briefer summary of U.S. educational v history. Finally, there is an introduction to acculturation, including the theoretical model used in this study. Chapter Three presents the research design of the dissertation, including a brief introduction to its theoretical roots in the case study approach. The chapter also outlines the two-step plan for data analysis. Chapter Four records the case study reports from the five respondents and analyzes each report, viewed individually. The first prediction of the model was upheld. Chapter Five provides a summary of suggestions for educational practice and discusses findings of the cross-analysis of the case studies, viewed collectively. The theoretical model’s second prediction was called into question. This paper posed four theoretical questions to focus further study. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS PAGE DEDICATION……………………………………………………………………………iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS……………………………….……………………………….iv ABSTRACT………………………………………………...…………………………..…v LIST OF FIGURES…...……………………………….…………………………....….....x CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION………………………………………..……..……….…1 Purposes of the Study………………………………………………………...………..1 Significance of the Study………………………………………………...……………3 Research Questions…………………………………………………………..………10 Other Introductory Considerations……………………………………….………….11 Organization of the Study…………………………………………..…………….….16 CHAPTER II: LITERATURE REVIEW…………………………………………….….17 Overview of Ethiopia……………………………………………………..………….21 History of Education in Ethiopia……………………………………………..……...25 First Strand: Tribal Traditions……………………....…………………………...28 Education in Tribal Traditions………………………………………..……...31 Troubling Topics…………………………………………………………..…32 Second Strand: The Orthodox Church………………………...…………………37 Education in the Orthodox Church………………………………..…………43 Troubling Topics………...…………………………………………….……..51 Third Strand: Islam………………………………………………………………53 Muslim Education…………………………………………………..……..…63 vii Troubling Topics………………………..……………………………………68 Fourth Strand: Modern Christian Missions……………………………...………82 Modern Christian Missions in Africa……………………………..…………91 Troubling Topics……...…………………………………………………….100 Fifth Strand: The Derg……………………………………………………..…...105 Education under the Derg………………………………..………………....112 Troubling Topics…………………………………………………….……...113 Sixth Strand: The Current Government………………………………………...117 Troubling Topics……….………………………………………………...…123 Looking to the Future…………………………………………………...………126 United States Education………………………………………………...…………..131 Troubling Topics…………………………………………………….………….132 Summary of U.S. Educational History through Ethiopian Spectacles………….133 The History of Education in the United States…………………………………135 Reflections on the 1969 Text……………………………………………….…..138 Education in the United States Since 1969…………………………….……….143 Acculturation……………………………………………………………..…………154 The Differentiated Multidimensional Model of Acculturation…………………159 Summary of Chapter Two…………………………………………………..……....163 CHAPTER III: METHODOLOGY…………………………………………………….165 Research Questions………………………………………………..……………..…165 Research Design………………………………………………….…………………166 Data Collection Phase………………………………………………………..……..173 viii Data Analysis Phase………………………………………………………………...194 CHAPTER IV: INDIVIDUAL CASE STUDIES’ RESULTS…………………………203 Case Study One: Alimitu………………………………………………………..….208 Case Study Two: Badaka……………………………………………………….…..233 Case Study Three: Camachu……………………………………………………..…254 Case Study Four: Dalmade…………………………………………………………276 Case Study Five: Father Efrem…………………………………………………..…299 CHAPTER V: DISCUSSION OF RESULTS…………………………………….……325 Preface: Hiking on the Beartooth Plateau……………………..……………………325 Distinctive Voices……………………………………………………………..……333 Education as an Agent in Acculturation……………………………………...…….343 The Differentiated Multi-Dimensional Model of Acculturation………………...…354 Implications…………………………………………………………………………368 Conclusion………………………………………………………………………….371 REFERENCES…………………………………………………………………............374 APPENDICES……………………………………………………………………….....385 Appendix A: Twelve-page Summary of Ethiopian Education…………..…….…385 Appendix B: One-page Summary of Ethiopian Education……………………….397 Appendix C: Subject Informed Consent Document……………………….......…398 Appendix D: Interview Guide for Ethiopian Immigrants……………………...…401 Appendix E: Visit to Haile Maryam