English Immersion in Ethiopia: An Explorative Survey of Bilingual Education Typology

Abstract

The general objective of this qualitative research was to explore and describe the immersion program of the English-medium private primary schools of Addis Ababa. Out of the two hundred and thirty nine private primary schools, which are operational currently, fifteen schools were selected for a general observation. Thirty-two participants were also purposively selected and interviewed. The data collected through the observation and
interview methods were thematically analyzed and interpreted within the theoretical framework of an immersion program. The findings of the explorative survey have shown that the program of the English-medium private primary schools of Addis Ababa could be labeled as an English Immersion; the schools may as well be called English Immersion Schools. The model is identified as an Early-Partial Typology of Immersion. Better
academic and economic advantages were found to be the major motivational forces behind the program. The absence of locally prepared English-Immersion textbooks was spotted as one of the major challenges.