A Brief Overview on Eritrean Education System: Critical Analysis and Future Research Directions

Abstract

Education matters in the world today because it has substantial impacts in terms of liberating people from illiteracy, diseases, hunger, and poverty. This chapter discusses the Eritrean education system at different period: before the Italian colonization (before 1889), during Italian colonialization (1889-1941), during British Administration (1941-1952), during Federation with Ethiopia (1952-1962), during annexation of Eritrea by Ethiopia (1962-1961), and after the Eritrean independence (after 1991). This study is mainly based on in-depth-interviews with officials of the Eritrean Ministry of Education and analysis of published and unpublished documents. Hence, future research should be directed at examining Eritrean education system based on information collected from other stakeholders such as teachers, who are policy implementers, students, and their parents. It underscores that the Eritrean education system has been significantly influenced by the economic and political situation of the country in that when the economic and political situation of the country has been not conducive, the education system has suffered. This study also discusses the implications of the findings of the current study and future research directions.