The Misunderstood Intellectual

   Welcome back to another edition of our Dig Deeper Initiative, where we will explore a book that I’m sure you’ll appreciate.

   Today’s book is called የከፍተኛ ትምህርት ዘይቤ and it was published in 1956 by a very famous and accomplished academic. A man who was born to a family of deacons and raised in the heart of the rapidly changing Addis Ababa of the 1920s and 30s.

   Although the author followed a similarly ecclesiastical life, his upbringing was also informed by a different set of experiences. The type that we, in today’s Ethiopia, are all too familiar with.

   It is in this mix of a religious upbringing, exposure to modern education and the experience of European migration that we find Dr. እጓለ ገብረ ዩሐንስ. A philosopher, lecturer and radio personality who also went by the name “መምህር አብራራው”.

  And even though much has been said about his views on culture and modernity, little if any attention has been given to his other positions. Particularly those that are extremely relevant to today’s students.

  So, this piece will explore his important yet overlooked perspective on higher education. And what better way to start than by introducing the man behind these radical yet liberating ideals.

A Short Bio

  Born in 1924, እጓለ was raised in a very religious household. One that was headed by a well-known and accomplished clergyman in the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. Following in his father’s footsteps, እጓለ began his educational journey in the church of ደብረሰላም ቅዱስ እስጢፋኖስ; where he was a student and later served as a deacon.

 Impressed by his religious service and academic skills, እጓለ was quickly shortlisted for a program in the prestigious ቅድስት ስላሴ መንፈሣዊ ትምህርት ቤት. Where a mix of religious and secular education was given to a select few.

  Always the diligent and active student, his continued excellence in his new school made him eligible for yet another scholarship. One that would send him to Greece.

  And so, at the age of 19, እጓለ moved to Europe to further his studies. A move that would last 10 years and take him to countries like Greece, Germany and the United Kingdom; where he experienced new friendships, foreign cultures and personal growth. All the while studying literature, philosophy and theology. 

   As he himself put it:

“እንደ ዕድል ሆኖ በአቴናም በጀርመን አገርም በት/ቤት በነበርኩ ጊዜ በርግጥ የሚያኮሩ ጓደኞች ነበሩኝ። ከነሱ ጋር በመወዳደር በመፎካከር በመከራከር በየጊዜው እየተሻሻለ ከሚሄድ የዕውቀት ጎዳና የደረስኩ ይመስለኛል።”

 By the time እጓለ came back to the Ethiopia of the 1950s, he was a 30-year-old returnee with a doctorate; eager to contribute to his country’s academic and public discourses. And it is his work as a university lecturer, an advisor to the Ministry of Information and a writer for a famous radio show that would cement him as the public intellectual of his time.

The Misunderstood Intellectual

  But despite his many contributions, እጓለ’s works have since been viewed through a narrow lens. And የከፍተኛ ትምህርት ዘይቤ is no exception to this; with most commentators only focusing on his views on tradition, modernity and the need for an education that balances both.

  In this respect, whether we look at the opinions of Biruk  Alemneh,  Daniel Seife Michael, Dr. Haile Habte  or Yikunnoamlak Mezgebu, each of these respected academics have a narrow yet widely shared perspective on this book.

 A perspective that revolves around quotes like these:

“ዋናው ሥራ ይህ ነው። መጀመሪያ የገዛ ራሳችንን ደኅና አድርገን ማላማጥ እና መዋጥ፤ ቀጥሎም ከውጭ የመጣውን በዚሁ መንገድ አሳልፎ መደባለቅ ማዋሐድ። ያንጊዜ ከሁለቱ የሠረጸ በገዛ ወዛችን የተጥለቀለቀ አዲስ የመንፈስ ሕይወት ይታያል።”

  And although there is nothing wrong with wanting such an education, our tendency to view የከፍተኛ ትምህርት ዘይቤ as a single-issue book has some major drawbacks. Especially when we skip those other viewpoints that can really help today’s students.

 So, which of እጓለ’s important yet overlooked opinions are we talking about?

Some Overlooked Perspectives

  One of the very first issues discussed in የከፍተኛ ትምህርት ዘይቤ is that of the questioning and reflective student. An idea that describes a good educational system as one that creates courageous and active graduates. The type that are not afraid to look inwards and question those biases and preconceived attitudes that would otherwise be left unchecked.

   As እጓለ put it:

“ራስን ማወቅ እጅግ ከባድ ነገር ነው። የሰው አስተዋይነትና ተመልካችነት አቅጣጫ ወደ ውጭ ነው እንጂ ወደ ራሱ ወደ ውስጥ አይደለም። ግን የውጭውን ዓለም ብቻ ሳይሆን የውስጡንም ዓለም፤ ባናት በደረቱ ያለውን የሐሳብና የስሜት ዓለም ደኅና አድርጎ እንዲመረምር እና አቅጣጫውን እንዲያዛውር ያስፈልጋል።”

 Underlying this idea of the reflective student is the belief that those who are able to ask the “why questions” can distance themselves from what some call “the irrationalism of immediate understanding”. And we should therefore encourage students to critically and independently look at themselves as well as those values they have been told to internalize.

 Another important yet overlooked perspective in የከፍተኛ ትምህርት ዘይቤ is that of a student centric education. Where schools are expected to support questioning and independent students by giving them a particular type of experience. The type that not only builds on their unique potentials but strives to accommodate their individual aspirations. 

   It is an idea that pushes schools to, at the very least, not deprive students of their freedom to choose what they want to be and how they want to achieve it.

   To quote እጓለ:

“የትምህርት ሥራ መጀመሪያ ነገር የያንዳንዱን ወጣት ዝንባሌ፤ ልዩ ሀብት ተፈላልጎ ማግኘት ነው። ያንዱ ሀብት ከሌላው የተለየ ነው። አንድ ሰው በመልኩም ሆነ በመንፈሱ ያው ራሱ ብቻ፤ የማይደገም፤ አንድ ዓይነት ሕላዌ እንደመሆኑ የግል ኅብር ያለው ሀብት፤ ስጦታ አለው። በዚህ ሀብት መሪነት መማር አለበት። ይህ ካልሆነ ትምህርትም አይከናወንም ኑሮም አይሳካም።”

   By challenging the type of schooling that tailors students to the demands of the labor market, እጓለ was not only ahead of his time. He is ahead of us now. As students still find themselves in a less than ideal learning environment. Where academic achievements and educational success is measured in monetary prospects, standardized results and career ambitions rather than by a student’s መክሊት, critical thinking skills and their self-development.

A Conservative Take

   Now, I understand that there are those who see these ideas as either too foreign or not that important. That children don’t know any better and should therefore be taught by instruction, not interpretation; by authority, not autonomy. That Ethiopian students should always be given the type of education that tells them what to think, not how to think.

   But this is a view that is both wrong and ahistorical, as እጓለ himself ties this idea of the reflective student with the tradition that he was brought up in: 

“ለዓይን እጅግ የሚቀርበው ቅንድቡ ነው ግን እሱን እንኳ አያይም።”

 አለ ባለቅኔ

   We can also take comfort from the works of academics like Dr. Maimire Mennasemay, who have found support for this idea of the reflective student in our Qiné tradition; particularly from the practices of ወርቃ ወርቅ ዘይቤ, ልብሰ ወርቅ ዘይቤ, ቅኔ ዘረፋ, ዘረፋ ምላሽ, ቅጸላ, አንድም and the “አራት አይን” approach.

   So, it is when we read and appreciate such works that we can realize two important things. Namely, that the idea of a reflective and interpretive schooling is not foreign to our educational tradition. And that the autonomous and questioning student was, for a time, a sign of a well-educated student; not a troublesome one.

   And with the works of Tebeje Molla, Eva Poluha and Desiree Scholtz having since shown the value of a student centric approach, especially in Ethiopia, it is difficult to imagine why we continue to overlook እጓለ’s radical yet liberating ideals.

   Why, for example, are we still trying to determine if እጓለ is the ideal mix of traditional and western education? When we should instead talk about his commitment to educational ideals that are found in both cultures. 

   Why are we trying to brand the man as the gold standard of Ethiopian intellectualism, but then choose to ignore what he actually said about education and its purpose? 

   Why, my dear reader, are we trying to put him on an academic pedestal just to glorify and imitate him when he himself warned against such elitist and plagiaristic attitudes amidst our educated few? 

   And finally, why are we using this narrow understanding of his works as a blueprint that our students need to follow? Especially when he was against such a narrow, controlling and prescriptive attitude towards education?  

It’s About Time

  These questions, just like his contributions, will likely be overlooked. 

   But despite all the nationalistic and vain praise that is given to እጓለ, it is his unique background and progressive perspectives that can actually help us. Especially if we want to improve the relationship between our schools and the students of today. 

 Whether it is his diverse educational background, his experience with foreign cultures or his ability to openly and fairly evaluate new ideas, these attributes have given him a rare yet important take on education. One that advocates active and continuous learning over ሽምደዳ and thinking that an education is just a means to get a good job. Where a questioning and inquisitive student, rather than a timid one, is considered as a success story. 

  His is a perspective that neither dismisses an educational tradition nor glorifies it. But instead sees the value of experiencing multiple cultures and finding the important qualities they share. It is a worldview that favors the cooperation, not the clash, of traditions; so long as it helps elevate the internal aspirations and inquisitive tendencies of our students.

   But a book that is not read is a book that is easy to misrepresent. And as we continue to pigeonhole እጓለ’s contributions as well as cherry pick and romanticize his traditional background, we have hurt our students.

   We have encouraged them to either see modern education as a sure way to a respectable and comfortable life or to see traditional education through the narrow and misguided lens of reactionarism. 

  We have pinned these two traditions against each other, all the while forcing our kids to make a superficial and limiting choice. A choice to either blindly pick the most lucrative career or to do so whilst glorifying the good old days.  Forgetting that both educational traditions, at their core, call for inquiry, reflection and independent thought.  

  And since የከፍተኛ ትምህርት ዘይቤ is almost 60 years old, it is high time we heed እጓለ’s words and do our children a favor. But, if we still can't apply his thoughts in our schools, then the least we can do is apply the following quote in our homes: 

“የምርመራ መንፈስ በማነሱ ነው። ባለንበት በመሄዳችን ነው። እንዲህ ያለ መንፈስ ከትምህርት ጋር ምንም ግንኙነት የለውም። ለማወቅ የሚፈልግ መጠራጠር መመራመር አለበት። እውነተኛው የትምህርት መንፈስ ይህ ነው።”