**1.3 Research questions**

This study aimed at answering the following basic research questions:


*Critical Reflection on the Pedagogical Science Training for Higher Education Institution Teachers… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.101857*

• What should be done to facilitate the effective implementation of the pedagogical science-training program in the country's higher education institutions?

#### **1.4 Analytical framework for the study**

This section presents the analytical framework for the study as rooted in existing research on teachers' professional development and the subsequent successes in terms of ensuring lifelong learning. Different scholars may see teachers' engagement in the Continuous Professional Development (CPD) program and their successes in terms of enhancing students' learning outcomes from different angles at different times. However, in this study, the effectiveness of CPD particularly the Pedagogical Science Training Program for Higher Education Institutions' Teachers was seen from the five components incorporated into the program i.e., being reflective teacher, active learning, continuous assessment, action research, and higher education-industry linkage. In the following, I shall present each of the five training components turn by turn briefly.

**Being reflective teacher**. As it is known, teaching is a complex activity that requires making appropriate decisions [12, 20]. Even if teachers need to follow certain set ground rules to make the teaching and learning processes orderly and fruitful, only this practice may not make teachers effective and efficient. Hence, to be effective and efficient in their professional careers, teachers must develop reflective skills. Reflective action involves a series of logical rational steps that are based on a deeper understanding of the matter under consideration. This means rather than being guided by impulsive action, the teacher is guided by persistent and careful consideration of how a given activity should be accomplished [21]. This notion was interpreted in this study in terms of analyzing the degree to which Ethiopian higher learning institutions' instructors show improvements in developing consistent reflective abilities and skills.

**Active learning**. A teaching method is not merely a device adopted for communicating certain concepts to students and it is not exclusively the concern of the teacher who is supposed to be at the 'giving end'. This implies that a method must link up the teacher and his/her students into an organic relationship with constant mutual interaction [22, 23]. Taking the above notion as a backdrop, in this study, the extent to which Ethiopian higher learning institutions' instructors brought a change in terms of implementing active learning in their respective lessons was studied.

**Continuous assessment**. It is a generally agreed-upon truth that a one-shot assessment cannot give a true impression of a student's academic performance. This notion calls for the application of continuous assessment techniques. As asserted by Abejehu [24], continuous assessment is part and parcel of the instructional process that has to be taken as a key tool in educational quality assurance endeavor. These techniques are learner-centered, teacher-directed, mutually beneficial, formative, context-specific, and ongoing processes. Therefore, this claim is interpreted in this research in terms of exploring the degree to which Ethiopian higher learning institutions' instructors brought improvement in applying different assessment techniques while assessing the performances of their students.

**Action research**. Action research is an exercise intended to bring about change in the teaching-learning process within a short period of time [25]. As such, it involves purposefulness, reflection, flexibility, practitioner empowerment and commitment to the teaching and learning process. It is a process of problem-solving intended to improve the teaching and learning processes.

Apart from teaching and rendering community services, university instructors must engage in research works that may solve teaching and learning problems, societal problems and beyond [26]. Therefore, this notion was applied in this research from the perspective of assessing the degree to which Ethiopian higher education institutions' instructors become productive in conducting relevant action research works to solve the problems they encounter in their day-to-day teaching and learning practices.

**Higher education institution-industry linkage**. This kind of linkage is assumed to offer an array of benefits for the parties involved [27]. Nowadays, the Ethiopian government more than ever wants to increase the employability of the graduates of higher learning institutions of the country. To this end, it is important to familiarize the students with the real contexts of industries and/or enterprises that are the potential areas of employments for the graduates. This, in turn, suggests that it is important that university instructors must get first-hand experiences about the potential employers to prepare graduates that best fulfill the demands of the labour market [26]. Hence, this notion is conceived and interpreted in this study in terms of analyzing the extent to which Ethiopian higher learning institutions' instructors brought significant improvements in terms of creating sustainable as well as relevant collaborations with the nearby industries and/or organizations to better prepare graduates who best fit to the demands of the labour market.

### **2. Research methodology**

In this study, qualitative content analysis particularly discursive content analysis was used as a core tool for data collection. This is because content analysis [28] is an accepted method of textual investigation. In other words, this content analysis concentrated on both the overt and latent contents of the documents analyzed [29]. Furthermore, qualitative content analysis helps a researcher to explore the meaning and realities beyond words and images [30].

In this respect, the research works made on the HDP program since its inception in the Ethiopian context, the action research works conducted on the program as the partial fulfillment of the requirements for the successful completion of the program, and reports organized on the program were critically analyzed. In addition, Focus Group Discussions, in which five key informants took part from all colleges of Arsi University, were used as tools of data collection.

### **3. Results and discussions**

This part of the study dwells on presenting the results of the study in thematic manners. In other words, the actual discursive qualitative content analysis was made by presenting the documents analyzed consecutively. As such, in the first place, the strengthens of the HDP program were reviewed and critically analyzed.

Then, this endeavor was followed by an exhaustive analysis of the drawbacks observed to the formulation as well as the implementation of the HDP program in the Ethiopian higher education institutions' contexts. Last but not least, the way forwards are proposed. The details of each of the three thematic areas were reviewed and critically discussed, in turn, in the following sections.

*Critical Reflection on the Pedagogical Science Training for Higher Education Institution Teachers… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.101857*

#### **3.1 Strengthens of the HDP program**

The Ethiopian government promulgated a new education and training policy in 1994 to address the needs and interests of the citizens of the country through education. To materialize the changes intended by the education and training policy, various measures were taken including reforms of teacher education programs and curricula [5, 16]. One of the fundamental reforms was the introduction of the TESO program.

In TESO, it was argued that teacher education institutions have to play an initiating role in the teacher education paradigm shift. The reform proposals presented by TESO offer a direct challenge to the teacher education institutions, in the sense that it is argued to be necessary to redefine Ethiopian teachers' roles as active change agents in the classrooms, within their communities, and ultimately within the Ethiopian society [18, 26]. The competencies that Ethiopian teachers at all levels must exhibit and that are assumed to guide the nature, organization and management of all programs are clearly set to serve as indicators for measuring progress towards the paradigm shift.

As part of the strategies to enhance the effective implementation of the TESO program, the Ethiopian Ministry of Education introduced HDP in 2003. The program was launched to enhance the quality of education in the higher education institutions of the country through the professional training of academic staff. Thus, successful completion of HDP has also been instituted as a requirement for all higher education institution teachers in public universities. A series of HDP training has been given so far and the vast majority of academic staff in public universities has already completed the program. The training was conducted using handbooks that have been revised from time to time with the view to make them increasingly more relevant and appropriate for academic staff at the higher education institution level of the country.

Therefore, some of the strong sides that have been observed in the course of the offering of this program are listed below.


#### **3.2 Limitations of HDP program**

As noted above, one of the main objectives of this study was to examine the limitations of the program. Accordingly, the results of the study revealed the fact that the program has so many drawbacks and the main ones are presented below.


*Critical Reflection on the Pedagogical Science Training for Higher Education Institution Teachers… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.101857*


It has been found that the HDP program has, for the first time, provided Ethiopian higher education institutions with a concrete framework that encompasses clear objectives, training guidelines, and profiles concerning being a reflective teacher, active learning, continuous assessment, action research, and higher education institution-industry linkage. However, the results of this study revealed that effective continuous professional development practices and successes have been hardly reflected in the higher education system of the country. Many researchers [31–33] have also found the fact that the higher diploma program has been ineffective in terms of ensuring the purposes it was intended for in the Ethiopian higher education institutions' contexts.

## **3.3 The way forward**

Based on the above research findings, the following recommendations are forwarded.

