College of Humanities, Language Studies, Journalism & Communication

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Assessing the Role of Media Relations in Public Mobilization: The Case of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam
(AAU, 202-06) Zewdu, Alemseged; Gebru, Amanuel (Phd)
Media relations is basically working with media. It is a specialized branch of public relations aiming at building relationships with media in seeking coverage of news. Similarly, journalists need public relations officers or directors as the source of their news package. And this relationship is crucial in pursuing their job well on both sides. The main focus of the study is to assess the media relations role of the National Council for the Coordination of Public Mobilization for the Construction of Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam Public Relations and Media Communication Directorate. The study employed mixed method of research to give an answer for the research questions in the study and assess the role of media relations in the construction of GERD. The data were collected from 43 journalists and PR director of the National Council purposefully to meet the objectives of the study. The findings were compared with the literature review and theory. The researcher revealed that the National Council has developed relationships with key journalist and the media based on a shared news agenda and is serving as a trusted source of information for journalists. The study concluded that MR practices of the office are not making the journalists’ job easier in delivering news packages on time and the PR tools used by the office have lack of quality. Finally, the study forward recommendations for the National Council Public Relations and Media Communication Directorate to enhance and maximize its media relations practices in building tight relationships to influence the media agenda in the construction of the GERD.
Ethnically Skewed Media: Representation and Stereotyping the Audience in the Case of ASRAT Television
(AAU, 202-06) Birhanu, Daniel; Meksaha, Mekuria (Assistant Professor)
The purpose of this study was to investigate the representation and stereotyping of audience in ethnically skewed media with a special focus on ASRAT Television. The study assessed the influence ASRAT Television has on its audience. The researcher employed qualitative methodology to get detail views and used purposive sampling technique to select key informants who watch ASRAT Television. For the conceptual and theoretical frameworks, Agenda Setting Theory and Magic Bullet/ Hypodermic Needle Theory were reviewed respectively. The findings of the study revealed that ASRAT Television misrepresents and stereotypes its audience that their perception about ethnicity was found to be distorted. The television played a paramount role in the audiences’ perception that the Amhara ethnic group is faced with existential threat from other ethnic groups in general from the Oromo ethnic group in particular. Also. It was discovered that ASRAT Television portrays the Federal government possible threats to the Amhara people in that it is secretly interfering and destabilizing the Amhara region. Based on the findings, it was recommended that ASRAT Television avoids misrepresenting its audience that exposes them holding distorted beliefs about their ethnicity. It was also recommended that ASRAT Television works for a peaceful coexistence of the Amhara and Oromo ethnic groups. Last but not least, a recommendation was made that ASRAT Television should avoid sensationalizing ethnic issues, inappropriate characterizations, antagonistic rhetoric and the use of loaded language in its news stories and other productions.
Anyuaa Oral Prose Narratives; Ethnic Genres and Social Functions
(Addis Ababa University, 1976) Tasew, Bayleyegn; Azeze, Fekade (PhD)
This thesis is concerned with studying the oral prose narratives of Anyuaa society, one of Ethiopian Nilo- Saharan groups bordering the Sudan. The major problem of the research arises from the need for paying due attention to study and appreciate the indigenous ways of catagorizing folklore in general and oral literatures in particular in various parts of the country. Thus, identifying the logical principles underlying the Anyuaa systems of generic classification of oral prose narratives, describing the distinctive features of genres and showing their most recurring social functions in the society are the main objectives of the study attained through descriptive methods of literary analysis. By so doing, the research contributes to the future tasks of categorizing oral prose narratives on national level or a larger scale. Folklore data within their social contexts are made apposite to the goals to be achieved and problems formulated. Therefore, the study depends primarily on extensive fieldwork A total of 118 narratives have been recorded using the methods of observation, interview and focus group discussion through survey, depth, local and incidental research projects. With the purpose of maintaining the contextual meanings conveyed by the source language, "word-for - word," "free" and "dynamic equivalent" translations have been employed and then validated by knowledgeable natives. After a close examination, selection, and interpretation of data, the research come up with the following original findings. (1) Three genres of oral prose narratives exist in their own rights as integral parts of the whole system of Anyuaa culture sharing common social functions identified as perpetuating culture, justifying social norms, controlling deviations, maintaining societal value systems, enculturing the youths through entertainment (2) Generic names are designated as the" Leere" , the "Wae" and the " Angade" in their local language. (3) The research also arrives at three indigenous principles with which the natives themselves make use of in delineating genres of oral prose narratives identified as (a) cultural meanings of generic names (b) narrative contents, and (c) performer's age. (4) Genres are actualized in seven natural contexts determined by the purposes of institutionalized or incidental social actions.
Tewodros in Historical Fiction
(Addis Ababa University, 1980-05) Assefa, Taye; Araaya, Hailu (PhD)
Of all the national efforts of Ethiopi an emperors, those of Tewodros are the most highly uppreciuted by the present publ i c. This may be because he was the one who under difficult circumstances strove to reunite and rebuild the crumbling empire. It was he who for the first time seriously challenged the power of the nobility and the clergy and thus practically disproved the inviol ~bility of the old status quo. Those who were aspiring for radical changes in the semi - feudal regime of Emperor Haile Sellassie therefore easily identified themselves with Tewodros . In this r espec t, he alone has inspired some six of the major writers to produce plays and novels which tell the story of his exp loits. These works are: Ande Lennatu, Tayitu Bi~ul, Warrior King, Yetewodros Enba, and Tsegaye ' s and Girmachew ' s TewodroGo There being little or no systematic study of these fictional works so far , this study has been undertaken to provide such a literary appraisal . In this context then , it hJS been the objective of this thesis to f ind out vlhat Tewodros symbolizes for these writers and also to determine what the literary worth of these fictional works is. As the nature of the l-J'orks examined has been fictional and their contents historical, so the approaches employed h~ve been both literary and historicalo Moreover, in order to maintain the objectiveness of the thesis, the actual analysis 0 2 t ;,e literary texts hes been supplemented by an introductory historical sketch of Tewodros , interviews with three authors of the works examined , and a compilation of folk poetry related to Tel-lOdros and collected from already existing sources. After an examination of the six works and the folk poems, this study has arrived at the conclusion that while oral literature focuses on Tewodros ' personality, most written historica l fictions, however, pay more attention to his nationale efforts. Though both written and oral historical fiction see Tewodros ' violence as "ruthlessness to the enemy" and though both pOrtray Tewodros as a symbol of heroism , written fiction alone associates with Tewodros such symbolic values as nationa l unity, national independence ,and progress. Tayitu_?itu~ , however, identifies Tewodros only with tyranny.In spite of mos t of the "lritten historical fic tions ' preoccupation withTewodros ' ideals and national efforts, they are not successful in presenting these in their proper socio-historica l perspec tive. Most of the politicalal portrayals could not co~sistently see the traditional society as being divided into antagonist ic classes with irreco ncilab l e interests.. As a r esu lt, the ",orks attribute" the opposition to Tewodros to such subjective f actors as the l ack of coop~rat ion, understanding , tact and tolerance on one or the other side . Accordingly, social advanc e is seen not as the outcome of class conflicts, but as the making of individuals \.,ho effect reforms from above. ;\s U,e focus of all the portrayals has been on the members of the ruli ng class, the fact of the peasantry 's being the basic motive force of the traditional society has no t been forcefully established . hpart from these shortcomings most of the works also suffer from t echnical vJeaknesses whi ch tend to undermine their literary values 0 These weaknesses are the sl~vish adapta tion of the st;ndard history of Tewodros, the lack of organic unity in their plot schemes and smooth flo .in their narratives, the abstractness of their ch3racters, and their inartistic emp loyment of flashback s and foreshadowings. The only works which have be(~n able to overcome some of these weaknesses are Warrior King and Yetewodros Enba .In spite of these weaknesses, the concern the most of these .Iorks have shown for the most etlical events in the lives of the people indicates a positive trend in the development of Ethiopian historical fiction. Besides, some of these works like Yetewodros Enba do succeed in giving us Some insight into the nature cif the forces that were opposed to Tewodroe. In their technica aspects , too, some of the works like Yetewodros Enba do possess lite rary qualities such as the judicious selection of one representative situa tion in the course of who se development characters and events unfold their essentiali natures . The use of dreams in some of these works indicates that these i1rc potential devices that could be fully deve loped and exploited in future lritings . In comparison with each other, however ,Yetewodros Enba and or King come out as the best of these fictional works both in r egard t o the treatment of their themes and the employment of devices like flashback and descripti on . i'ihile the shortcomings in many of the works may teach futu re writers by negative examples, their literary qualities surely serve to enrich the tradition of creative writing.
Verbs in Oromo Sentence Patterns
(Addis Ababa University, 1980-06) Leta, Dejenie; Gamta, Tilahun (PhD)
The main purpose of this. research was to find the categories of verbs that determine the various Dromo sentence patterns. At the initial stage, a review of all available books and publications on Oromo in general, and the .verb in particular was made. In cases where adequate information was lacking an interview of the people concerned was~conducted. Besides, to get a good picture of what sentence patterns look like, certain books on English sentence patterns were reviewed. Five categories of verbs have been determined. These categories of verbs fit into the following five basic Oromo sentenoe patterns which also have been studied in the course of the research: 1. Npl v. 9utAman inDufe. (Gutama came). 2•. v. gutAman dAljessa ajjese .•. (Gutama killed a baboon). 3. Npl Npl v. gutl\man hakimi Da. (Gutama is a phys ic:ian)• s c 4:. NP Adj. v. 9u~man 9Ababa Da. (Gutama is short) •• s 5. Npl NP2 NP2 V •• gutAman Cala minje goDAte e (Gutama made s 0 oc Chala his bestman). The researcher believes that these five basic sentence patterns form the basis for the various kinds of transforms that can be derived. Though the researcher has not dealt with· the transforms in this study, it is anticipated that once they are determined properly, the teaching of Oromo syntax may be facilitated immensely ••
Ethiopian Literature in English
(Addis Ababa University, 1980-06) Seifu, Debebe; A. K., Sinha (PhD)
Looked at from the point of view of the hoary Geez and Amharic literature's, creative writing in English is a baby tradition in Ethiopia. However, this baby tradition has, so far, attracted some venerable writers in Amharic like Tsegaye Gebre Medhin and Dan iachew worku and as such it must needs be subjected to some critical app raisal. This, thus, is the main aim and purpose of this dissertation. Before I come to examine in tobQ creative writings in English, I have attempted to make some descriptive assessment s of some of the Amharic works of some of the writers by way of giving a preliminary insight and a background information. Out of the seven writers I have dealt with in this dissertation, I have delineated in chapte r one, though understan dabily cursorily, the Amha ric works of four writers as these are the ones who can be said to have produced some creative works in the vernacular. In chapter two I have given primarily thematic treatments to seven novels. Among these, The Thirteenth Sun, as a matured and intricate work, has taken much more spaoe t han the others. sahle Selass ie's three novels, arranged and tteated chronologically attempt to show his progress in a rtistio deftness and thematic manipulation . The rest have one novel each and their shortcomings notwithstanding , their attempt to use a foreign language in tackling noteworthy issues is brought out to the attention of the reader. In chapter three I have dealt with the poetic works of TsegayeGebre Medhin and EyasuGorfu. Here, I have found out Tsegaye to be a conscientious poet with a strong committment for the cause of the black people and the resuscitation of their cultures. Conversely, Eyasu tackless issues --- that have only a marginal relevance even to his home land.Among the five Engli sh plays we have in chapter four , four of t hem are authored by Tsega y e Gebre Medhin. Two of these are written in prose, whereas the rama ining two a re couched in beaut iful v e rse. The fifth play is Abbie Gubegna ' s a nd it is on e of the shoddiest works to appear in Engl ish. Finally, in a brief conclusion, I have tried to give an overall picture of the present state o f creative "ratting in English . As long as stringent censorship is prevalent in the country and as long a s Ethiopians have some thing to say artistically to t he outside world, Ethiopian literature in English will continue to com e forth, even if in lulls and a t intervals.
A Contrastive Analysis of The Phonologies of Gedeo and Amharic
(Addis Ababa University, 1981-04) Erkihun, Luiseged; Wedekind, Klaus (PhD)
The Process of this st.udy has gom, through four main stages. ~h e first stage covers the introductory part of the p aper, ",hich deals with the statemen t of th8 proble!!'., t h e val ue of the study and its limitations. It also presents a literature revie\>' of prior worl
Classification and Explanatory Analysis of Student Errors in Advanced English Composition II, 1979/80
(Addis Ababa University, 1981-05) Kefele, Mammo; Gamta, Tilahun (PhD)
In this study, errors in the compositions of 89 3rd and 4th year students were identified and classified. The errors were based on 157 essays written for the cdurse, Advanced Composition II. A ., total of 56,426 words were used in these essays. Of these, j204 were errors of one kind or the other and their average frequency of occurrence was about 6 errors in a 100-word essay. These 3204 errors were classified into,six major categories, namely, grammar, style, spelling, punctuation, handwriting and unclasoifiable errors. Specifically, it was found out: that 1525 errors or 3% of the total words or 48% of the total errors were made in grammar; that 753 errors or 1% of the total words or 24% of the total errors were made in style; that 526 errors or Oe9% of all the words used or 16% of the total errors were committed in spelling; that 303 errors or 0.5% of the total words used or 9% of the total errors were made in punctuation; and that 35 errors or 0.06% of all words used or 1.1% of the total errors were in handwriting. On the subcategory level, it was also found out: that diction accounted for 507 errors or 0.9% of the total words or 16% of all the errors; that both agreement and tense were responsible for 770 errors or 1.4% of the total words or 24% of all errors; and that prepositions & particles accounted for 341 errors or 0.6% of the total words used or 10.6% of all errors. On the basis of these findings, it was recommended that ILS students should be taught spelling formally. It was also recommended that diction or vocabulary, tense, agreement, prepositions & particles and punctuation be taught formally and intensively.
Oroho Substantives: Some Aspects Of Their Morphology And Syntax
(Addis Ababa University, 1981-05) Yimam, Baye; Beyene, Taddensse (PhD)
This study is an attempt made to describe Oromo NOUNS and ADJECTIVES. The purpose of the study is to see if NOUNS and ADJEe- TIVES in Oromo can be treated as constituents of just one class instead of the traditional two. To this end, the formal and distributional characteristics of NOUNS and ADJECTIVES have been examined in s i x chapters.In chapter one, reviews of previous works, and purposes and limitations of the study have been made. In the second and third chapters, the inflect ional and derivational affixes of Oromo NOUNS and ADJECTIVES have been examined and compared" The inflectional affi:;~es for such grammatical categories as number t gender; and case have been examined and explained. Regarding their derivations the roots from which NOUNS and ADJECTIVES may be derived and the affixes that derive them have been identi fied. Chapter five deals with some processes of nominalization and adjectivizationso Here, attempts have been made to describe th-e proceSDeD of compounding and re!ativization. In chapter five, the syntactic positions and functions of NOUNS and ADJECTIVES along with those of p ronouns , demonstratives, and numerals have been considered" Chapter six summarizes the discussion and suggests as a possible conclusion that NOUNS and ADJECTIVES may be considered as constituents of the class of substantives on the basis of their morphological similarity.
The Origin and Development Amharic Literatuhe
(Addis Ababa University, 1981-05) Aregahegne, Assefa; Araaya, Hailu (PhD)
A considerable number of studies of Amharic literature have been written by Ethiopian as well as foreign scholars. Studies by Ethiopians are v.ry fragmentary and those by foreigners reveal distortions. This thesis attempts to overcome ~ these problems of fragmentation and distortion in the study of Amharic literature. The topic is very vast and the thesis is necessarily a very condensed survey of the development of Amharic literature along with a critical analysis of epoch-making Amharic novels, plays and poetical works. Compared to other African and even European countries, Ethiopia has a very old literary tradition. Although the masses ~f the people still remain illiterate, literacy and hence the art of writing has its roots in Ethiopian antiquity. Ethiopia's earlie$~ li~ra~ures were written in Geez, a classical language that persisted until the middle of the twentieth century and still lingers around churches and monastries. Written Amharic literature made its first appearance around 1300 but actually started to flourish only at the beginning of the present century. The first Amharic novel, Afawar~ Gabrayasus's L~bb Walla~ :rarik was published around 1900. Since then a remarkable number of novels have been written among which F~~ir ~ska Ma4abir, Adafris, Ya~ay Kokab Tirri and Ma'~bal are critically analyzed. Fi*ir fska Mafabir is, a novel of shining excellence both in form and content. Ita harmony of setting and characters and artistic manipulation of literary techniques al~ng with its social significance will always secure a special place for it. Adafr~s stands out most conspicuously particularly for its originality of style and unparalleled excellence in the use of modern literary techniques. It is truly the work of a master artist and craftsman. Ya~ay Kokab Tirri and Malibal manifest the highest level of political preoccupation in the Amharic novel thus marking a new trend of development. Modern Amharic drama is still.in its infancy. It is no more than seventy years old. The first Amharic play Fabula by Bajrond Takla Hawariat was staged at the beginning of this century. The earliest Amharic plays, which understandably were crude in form, dealt with the Italian occupation (1928-33). Amharic drama started to be perfected only after the 1950's and 60's with the return of dramatists trained abroad. Kabadil Mikael, Girmachaw Takla Hawat-iat, Mangistu Lamma and ~ngaye Gabramadhin are among the most prominent playwrights who have contributed to the development of this genre in Amharic. Amharic drama has evolved through more or less similar stages as the Amharic novel, and today manifests greater realism and enhanc,ed political preoccupation. , Poetry is a genre deeply rooted in the Ethiopian oral tradition. It is the oldest form of literary art in the country. Throughout the ages Ethiopia has produced prominent poets. Among the earliest poets Aga~ahu lngida, Yoftahe Nigussie and Walda Giorgis Welda Yohannis have imprinted their names with the patriotic poems they composed on the eve of the Italian occupation (1928- 33). Among the moderns Kabada Mikael, Mangistu Lamma, ~ngaye Gabramadhin are the most popular and highly skilled. Through the decades, Amharic literature in general has manifested a significant change and development both in its form and contento Whereas earlier Amharic literature was largely religioun, moralistic and didactic, modern Amharic literature has shown a marked shift in intent and content achieving greater social significance and realism. Amharic literature has faced a considerable number of obstacles among which censorship, the mass illiteracy in the country, the high cost of printing, the absolute lack of publishing houses, and most of all, the lack of professional training among its authors have been the most retarding. However, the eruption of the popular Ethiopian Revolution of 1966 has opened a brighter furture for its development, and these problems will eventually be overcome.
the verbt TO BE IN OROMO
(Addis Ababa University, 1981-05) Kebbede, Ishetu; Bender, M.L (PhD)
The object;l':f'f this paper is b analyse the ve r b 'to be ' in Or omo . The pape r has seven sections : In sections one and two identification of the pr ob l em and a brief survey Df relevant lite rature a r e given. In the third section the shapes is treated. copular form ~-Da with "- In the fourth section its diffe r ent allomorphic othe r copula r expressions : Existence, Location, Attribute, Identity, and Possession in the s i mple declarative pr esent tense are dealt with . In secti~n five ¥ses of copular verbs in the different tenses is shown . I n section six the negative form of the c opular expressions~ given . In the concluding section, a brief compa ris on of mo r pho l ogy and syntax of copula r expression s of thr ee ~)anguages : Hindi, Amharic, and Japanese is carried ou t. Japanese, like Or omo , is said to be of " Rigid III" syntactic type , whereas Hind i and Amharic are supposedly transitional . I n the a na lys is of the c opu la a c ontroversial mo r pheme (~wh ich was treated as a possessive ma r ke r by ear lier write rs, is identified as a copula in this paper. This is'a poi nt of special interest and still ~ I t is evident that the analysis of the complex ~, c ontroversial. suppletive copular system of Or omo r equires fu r the r work beyond the limits of this thesis . Fo r example, the r ole of auxiliaries and vari ous transformations invol Ving copulas need to be taken up .
The State of the Short Story in Ethiopia: an Unexploited Genre
(Addis Ababa University, 1981-06) Yazbec, Olga; Araaya, Hailu (PhD)
The main purpose of thls r esea r c h i s to introduce the Ethiopian short s t ories to the Ethiopian public, a work that has not been attempted so f a r. The r esear ch examines why the short s tory, which is a recent genre, i s un exp l o ited and unfamiliar to the Ethiopian public. The Ethiopian short stories have been analyzed fr om the thematic and technical point of vi e w~ During the progress of th e s tudy, an attempt has been made to look into the conditions which have hind ered the d e velopment of the s hort s tory in Ethiopia, and have "lade it an unexploited genre~ Finally, recommenda tion s have been suggested in order to familiarize the public with the short story, and to encourage writ e r s to use thi s literary medium.
The Phonology of Mecha Oromo
(Addis Ababa University, 1981-06) Tola, Wako; Beyene, Taddese
The purpose of this thesis is to present a fuller analysis of the phonology of the Mecha dialect of Oromo. The paper has six sections. In the first section the relevant liter~ture is revied in brief. The second section treats the description of the phonemes, their allophones and the distributions of the phonemes. The third section deals with the phonotactics and syllabification. A frequency count of phonemes based on the Swaddesh Basic VocGbulary and on an original story in Oromo, k~amale:f ye:y:i: is also presented in this section. The fourth section deals with the major suprasegmental phenomena such as length, stress, pitch and terminal contours. Lexical pitch and stress are non-phonemic but grammatically significant. Morphophonemic processes involving assimilation of consonants, epenthesis, metathesis, deletion, vowel shortening and reduplication are dealt with in the fifth section. The concluding section presents a summary of the findings of the analysi
Comedy and Social Purpose: Two Plays of Menghistu Lemma
(Addis Ababa University, 1981-06) Getaneh, Akalu
The Phonology of Mecha Oromo
(Addis Ababa University, 1981-06) Tola, Wake; Beyene, Taddese
The purpose of this thesis is to present a fuller analysis of the phonology of the Mecha dialect of Oromo. The paper has six sections. In the first section the relevant liter~ture is revied in brief. The second section treats the description of the phonemes, their allophones and the distributions of the phonemes. The third section deals with the phonotactics and syllabification. A frequency count of phonemes based on the Swaddesh Basic VocGbulary and on an original story in Oromo, k~amale:f ye:y:i: is also presented in this section. The fourth section deals with the major suprasegmental phenomena such as length, stress, pitch and terminal contours. Lexical pitch and stress are non-phonemic but grammatically significant. Morphophonemic processes involving assimilation of consonants, epenthesis, metathesis, deletion, vowel shortening and reduplication are dealt with in the fifth section. The concluding section presents a summary of the findings of the analysiB~
English Conditional Sentences: A Comparative Analysis Of the Structural and Communicative Approaches in Teaching to Non-Native Speakers
(Addis Ababa University, 1982-05) Banteyerga, Hailom; Asfaw, Melaku (PhD)
In this study an attempt was made to find out ~lhethe:ror not the °Communicative approach' in the teaching of English Conditional Sentences is more effective than the 'Structural Approach'. To test thislSnglish functions that employ conditional sentences were identified. Then, teaching materials were prepared along the principles of the 'Communicative Approach' and given to three study groupso For the three control groups, teachinJ materials based on the 'Structural Approach' were given. All in alI, 10:2. students" all Amharic speakers, were randomly distributed into six groups~ Out of these, 78 students attended the experimental classes regularly and took the t\o10tests given •.In the scores obtained, the study groups performed better than the control groups at a significance level of .05. It was also observed that the study groups showed more interest, motivation, creativity, involvement, and sensitivity to learn the materials they wer e given than the control groups. On the basis of the findings, it was recommended that nonnative speakers should be taught English through the 'Communicative Approach' • It was also recommended that intensive research should be carried out in 'Discourse Analysis' in order to facilitate the designing and application of a 'Communicative Syllabu
Some Cultural Elements as Reflected in Somali Folktales
(Addis Ababa University, 1982-06) Haji, Abdulkadir; Araaya, Hailu (PhD)
This study has three main divisionso The first part which runs from chapter one to six lays the foundation for uhe study by describing the purpose of the study, the Somali people, their language, culture and economyo The area of study, the methodology used, transcription and a brief introduction to oral literature in Somali culture are also given in this part. The second part deals with description and analysis of the tales selectedo Here, a brief description of each tale, or that of a group of tales is given, and then, the cultural elements it (they) embodies are pointed out through a thematic analysiso This part is where the bulk of the work is, and it has several subdivisions. The third part is the conclusion, which sums up significant elements observed in the analysis, and also attempts to point out the implications of some of the cultural values to the modern concepts of education and national integrationo Eighty-two teales selected for this study are entered in the appendixo
The Measure1'ient of English Language Proficiency of High School Graduates
(Addis Ababa University, 1982-06) Gashaw, Tesfaye; Araya, Hailu (PhD)
The historical development of the Ethiopian School Leaving Certificate Examination (ESLCE) - the transition from the General Certificate Education Examination (GCE) to the ESLCE and the creation of a new curriculum suitable for the Ethiopian context has been thoroughly discussed. Several attempts have been made to change the form of the ESLCE English examination from a subjective type to an objeotive one and to simplify the difficult items. Arguments for and against the subjective and the objective tests by various concerned people have been briefed in the review of literature. But the various attempts have not changed the situation any better. As a policy, the purpose of the ESLCE has been stated that the examination, at present , serves as a hi g h school completion as well as college entrance examination. No sUbstantial inquiry has been made regarding the dual nature of the examination. Due to its dual purpose, the writer of this thesis has attempted to make a survey study of the effectiveness of the ESLC English examination as a profic iency test , and if necessary to propose an alternative approach . Discussions are opened on the theories and principles of tests. Out of 758 freshmen students enrolled for the 1981-2 second semester , 350 students have been selected for the study. Data have been coll ec ted for the 1980 ESLCE and the1981 F_'eshmen English results by using a table of random sampling. Using the model of linear correlation coefficient attempts have been made to find out whether the 1980 ESLC English results and the 1981 Freshmen English results of the same students correlate or not. Findings show that the relation between the two examinations is very low. Those students who have obtained good grades in the ESLC English examination do not seem to show good English language performance at the University. Findings, therefore, prove that the ESLC English examination is ineffective in predicting the English language performance of twelve grade leavers when they join the University. Conclusions are arrived, based on the results, that the ESLC English examination is ineffective ,as a proficiency test on the grounds that (a) it cannot serve as a criterion for admission to the University. (b) it cannot be a measure for predicting stUdents ' language performance at the University level. To avoid such ineffectivensss , the wr iter recommends as a possible alternative approach that the Ministry of Education and the University should set two separate examinations - the Ethiopian School Leaving Certificate Examination (ESLCE) and College Entrance Examination (GCE) respectively, specifying the forms, contents and purposes of the two examinations. The writer makes it clear that the conclusion is not finaland perfect and suggests that further research and evaluation on other variables (syllabus, materials, quality of teachers, methodology etc) are urgently needed before moves are taken.
A Contrastive Analysis of The Phonologies of Arbore and English
(Addis Ababa University, 1982-06) Abebe, Negussie; Despatie, Gerard (PhD)
This study has five main parts. The first part is the introduction which gives an over-all description of the ph~nological nature of Arbore. This part aiso tries to explain the purpose and scope of the study. The second part is a description of the phonology of Arbore in more detail. It describes the segmental phonemes together with their respective allophonic variants and their distributions, the suprasegmentals, and lastly the distribution of the phonemes. The third part is a description of English phonology which covers the segmental phonemes and their respective allophones, the suprasegmental phonemes along with the distributions of the phonemes and allophones in a parellel form like that of the description given for Arbore. The fourth chapter is a contrastive Analysis of the phonologies of Arbore and English. This part deals with the predictions of errors from the point of view of the I~bore speakero The fifth and last chapter of this study consists of a conclusion. It presents a summary of the preceeding part§ and also attempts to point out the need for an additional and more complete study of Argore.
The Measurement of Proficiency of High School Graduates
(Addis Ababa University, 1982-06) Gashaw, Tesfaye; Araaya, Hailu (PhD)
The historical development of the Ethiopian School Leaving Certificate Examination (ESLCE) - the transition from the General Certificate Education Examination (GCE) to the ESLCE and the creation of a new curriculum suitable for the Ethiopian context has been thoroughly discussed. Several attempts have been made to change the form of the ESLCE English examination from a subjective type to an objective one and to s implify the difficult items. Arguments for and against the subjective and the objective tests by various concerned people have been briefed in the review of literature . But the various attempts have not changed the situation any better. As a policy , the purpose of the ESLCE has been stated that the examination, at present, serves as a hi gh school completion as well as college entrance examination. No substantial inquiry has been made regarding the dual nature of the examination . Due to its dual purpose, the writer of this thesis has attempted to make a survey study of the effectiveness of the ESLC English examination as a pro f iciency t es t , and if necessary to propose an alternative approach. Discussions are opened on the theories and princi ples of tests. Out of 758 freshmen students enrolled for the 1981-2 second semes ter, 350 students have been selected for the study. Data have been collected for the 1980 ESLCE and the 1981 F _'eshmen English r esults by using a table of random sampling. Using the model of linear correlation coefficient attempts have been made to find out whether the 1980 ESLC English results and the 1981 Freshmen English results of the Same students correlate or not. Findings show that the relation between the two examinations is very low. Those students who have obtained good gr ades in the ESLC English examination do not seem to show good English l anguage performance at the University. Findings, therefore, prove that the ESLC English examination is ineffective in predicting the English language performance of twelve grade leavers when they join the University. Conclusions are arrived, based on the results, that the ESLC English examination is ineffective as a proficiency test on the grounds that (a) it cannot serve as a criterion for admission to the University. (b) it cannot be a measure for predictin~ students ' language performance at the University level. To avoid such ineffectivensss, the writer recommends as a possible alternative approach that the Ministry of Education and the Univer sity should set two s eparate examinations - the Ethiopian School Leaving Certificate Examination (ESLCE) and COllege Entrance Examination (GCE) respectively, specifying the forms, contents and purposes of the two examinations. The writ er makes it clear that the conclusion is not final and perfect and sugges t s tha t further r esearch and evaluation on other variables (syllabus, materials, quality of teachers , methodology etc) are urgently needed before moves ar e taken .

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