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Abstract
Modern Education in Ethiopia is a very recent phenomenon which started at about 1900. Girls' education, as compared to that of boys, has been lagging behind. It is true that girls' enrolment by itself has increased, but the gap is nevertheless widening. This is due to the various social, economic and cultural factors that hinder the participation and performance of girls. This has an impact on the participation and performance of women later in life, in their access to decision making positions and their participation in the country's development. The problems that women and girls encounter at different levels in Ethiopia's society shall be presented in this article.
Gender Role Problems
There is a stereotype role concerning gender starting from birth. If the baby is a girl, people applaud three times, if it is a boy, they do so seven times. A mother who gives birth to a baby boy is congratulated, whereas if the mother gives birth to a baby girl her husband does not welcome her. Right from the beginning of her life, a girl is told to stay at home and to help mother or to watch the boys play. If she is allowed to play, she is expected to play soft games with girls and to keep neat and tidy even when playing. Instead of going to school, she is expected to get married at an early age and to take over the household chores. Women in rural areas do both household chores and farm work, men, however, do not participate in household and kitchen activities. In church, women and men sit in separate rows. In school, there is a gender bias both in the classroom and outside. In the classroom girls are not seen or heard. They are taught to be shy and quiet. They are outsmarted by boys and are not assertive enough to bring up their problems. The fear of making mistakes in the classroom and being laughed at by boys makes them not answer or ask questions. If the teaching methodology is only "talk and chalk," girls are more at a disadvantage than boys. Textbooks do not portray girls in a proper manner. The activities girls perform, the pictures of men's and women's biographies,...