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[PANEL] 0404 MANAGING UNIVERSITIES AND QUALITY OF HIGHER EDUCATION
Organizers:
SISAY Asefa, Director of the Center for African Development Policy Research (CADPR), Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, Michigan, USA
Paper presenters:
MESFIN Lemma; HAYGET Adhana; RAHWA Gebre Tesfahuney; TEKLAY Kahsay; BERHANE Kidane Gebru;
SISAY Asefa; TEREFE Degefa
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EFFECTS OF EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT ON EMPLOYEES’ TURNOVER INTENTION AT ETHIOPIAN MANAGEMENT INSTITUTE [Abstract ID: 0404-05]
The aim of the study was to investigate the effect of employee engagement on turnover intention of employees in Ethiopian Management Institute. The data was collected through self-administered questionnaire from 160 respondents. The instruments used for data collection were Gallup (1985) 12 items employee engagement questionnaire and Shore and Martin (1989) 4 item turnover intention survey tool. Spearman's Rank Correlation Statistical tool and linear regression were used to test the hypotheses. The finding revealed that there is moderate level of employees’ engagement. The finding also showed turnover intention level of employees in the institute is moderate. Significant negative relationship was found between employee engagement and turnover intention. Significant negative relationship was also found between turnover intention and employee engagement factors such as opportunity, recognition, perception of care, development, sense of mission, opinion counts, co-workers commitment to quality, existence of friendliness in the workplace, progress feedback and opportunity to learn and grow. No significant relationship was found between employee engagement factors such as clarity of expectation and availability of materials and equipment with turnover intention. The result of the study also revealed that employee engagement is a major predictor of turnover intention and of the twelve employee engagement factors only care was found to be a significant predictor of turnover intention.
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GENDER AND LEADERSHIP IN ETHIOPIAN UNIVERSITIES- A STUDY IN SELECTED WORKING PLACES OF ADDIS ABEBA UNIVERSITY, MAIN CAMPUS [Abstract ID: 0404-06]
Despite the availability of many international policies, women are under-represented in senior leadership positions in both developed and developing countries though they achieved better education and workplace over the last half century. In Ethiopia, the issue of gender disparity in leadership is similar to majority of the developing countries and it is wider in the universities. Thus, it is crucial to study gender and leadership in Ethiopian Universities by conducting a survey study on selected working places of Addis Ababa University (AAU), Main Campus which is one of the development agents of the nation. This is done via analyzing gender and leadership in the university by assessing gender issues in its leadership using both primary and secondary data. The primary data were collected from 289 sample size with 40.5% response rate. In this study, both qualitative and quantitative data analysis techniques were used. There is gender gap in leadership of the university. Though it is with low level and at its infant stage, gender equity is being practiced for leadership in the university. The university has well designed but less implemented gender mainstreaming strategies and programs for its leadership aspects. The main challenges for gender equality on leadership of the university include: lack of gender sensitive evaluation system on leadership; gender discrimination on leadership; lack of women empowerment on leadership; lack of gender awareness on gender and leadership; lack of gender disaggregated planning & reporting system; lack of coordination among the gender activities of gender issues on leadership; and lack of gender sensitive policy implementation. The university has opportunities: training and research capacity on gender issues of its leadership; availability of highly professional and interested female staffs who are potential to be leaders; and having ready made local, regional, national and international policies to work on gender equality as well as women empowerment and agreements together with protocols that are signed to address gender gap in all aspects including social, economic, political, etc. aspects of the country. Thus, the University needs to solve its challenges while exploiting its opportunities for its achievement of gender equality on its leadership positions and issues.
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PRACTICES, PERCEPTIONS AND CHALLENGES OF PROFESSIONAL MENTORING IN ASSURING QUALITY EDUCATION IN ETHIOPIA. (THE CASE OF AKSUM UNIVERSITY) [Abstract ID: 0404-03]
The main purpose of this research was to explore the practice, challenges and perception of students, mentors, quality assurance officers and university administrative staff relating to mentoring. The study focuses on how mentors, quality assurance officers and principals support their students to practice one-to-five networking and enhance quality education. The main themes of the research are as follows: first, the relationship between mentees, mentors, quality assurance officers and department heads to implement successful mentoring in one-to five networking; second, the perceptions of mentees, mentors, quality assurance officers and department heads; finally, the professional roles and responsibilities of mentors, mentees, quality assurance officers and department heads. To conduct the study, a descriptive survey approach was employed and both primary and secondary sources of data were used. Data collecting instruments were questionnaires and interviews and observations around the basic research questions. The findings of the study generally revealed that the majority of the department heads, mentors and mentees were not executing their roles and responsibilities in the implementation of mentoring in one-to-five networking for a variety of reasons, which are described fully in the study.
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TEACHERS TURNOVER, TURNOVER INTENTION AND THEIR IMPACT IN THE QUALITY OF HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS EDUCATION OF ETHIOPIA [Abstract ID: 0404-02]
The aim of this case study was to assess the factors affecting teacher turnover and turnover intention and their impact on the quality of education at Mekelle, Aksum and Adigrat Universities, and to fill the existing knowledge gap regarding the universities in question. Teacher turnover disrupts instructional and institutional cohesion, which are the foundations of excellence in higher education institutions. When experienced teachers leave the teaching profession, the quality of education is damaged and with it the country’s hopes for development. Without good teachers, the quality of education will decline. The variables in the case study were student characteristics, working conditions, socio-economic status, job characteristics, job satisfaction, professional commitment, teachers’ turnover intention and teacher turnover. This case study used both qualitative and quantitative research methods. The study use descriptive research design, specifically percentage, mean, standard deviation, multiple regressions, correlation, rank, narration, ratio. The quantitative data were analyzed by SPSS and the qualitative data by narrative analysis. The primary data were collected using questionnaires and face-to-face interviews with questionnaire respondents, and the secondary data using documents from the three universities studied. The case study showed that that all the variables explored had a significant impact both on teachers’ turnover intentions and on actual teacher turnover at the three universities studied. As a result, despite occasional efforts to enhance the relevance and scope of education, there was a decline in the quality of education offered at least three universities. The recommendation of the study was therefore that the management of these universities should pay more attention to the characteristics of students, as well as to be working conditions, socio-economic status, job characteristics, job satisfaction, professional commitment, turnover intentions and actual turnover of teachers in order to improve teacher retention and reduce the costs of teacher recruitment. Such measures were necessary to improve the quality of higher education and to produce disciplined, ethical, independent, cooperative, productive and innovative graduate students.
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THE CRITICAL ROLE OF EFFECTIVE MANAGEMENT IN TRANSFORMING AFRICAN UNIVERSITIES AND COLLEGES THROUGH INTERNATIONAL ACADEMIC PARTNERSHIPS: CASES FROM ETHIOPIA [Abstract ID: 0404-04]
This paper explores the prevailing challenges and opportunities in creating high quality universities in Africa based on a case study of Ethiopian universities. The paper underscores academic quality and relevance as key determinants of universities and trusts that well-thought out partnerships with well-established universities would help support emerging universities. These partnership experiences include historical and current engagement of Addis Ababa University with Michigan Universities such as Michigan State University, University of Michigan and Western Michigan University and others in terms of graduate education and academic staff as well graduate students from attracted from Ethiopia. The paper engages with the important concept of economists that higher education is an important platform to develop and excel human capital which is a necessary precondition for sustainable development. Based on the notion of human capital development, the potential Ethiopia has to benefit from demographic dividend through well transformed university system that caters quality education to enable the youth is well noted and implicated.