Imagining and Navigating the Future: Educational Aspirations and Agency of Economically Disadvantaged Ethiopian Secondary School Students

Abstract

In Ethiopia, economically disadvantaged students are not equally represented in the education system, in terms of enrollment and attendance. A high drop out and low completion rates of these groups widen the educational inequalities in the country. The government of Ethiopia has sought to allocate resources to narrow the educational inequality, but the policy framework is not based on the capabilities of students or their ability to utilize resources to move forward to their aspired futures. This dissertation examines how economically disadvantaged secondary school age youth in Ethiopia imagine and pursue their aspired future amidst supporting and constraining conditions. My study also explores how these students exercise their agency towards choosing and pursuing their educational aspirations. I situate the capability to aspire (the degree of freedom the youth have to aspire) and capacity to aspire (the ability to explore the future) within a relational capability theory, where aspirations are imagined with and for others. In this dissertation, I narrate the life history of six secondary school age youth in Dire Dawa, Ethiopia, exploring their educational aspirations and their abilities to work towards their aspired futures. The stories reveal that economically disadvantaged youth do have aspirations to improve their overall socio-economic well-being and the well-being of others, ranging from supporting one’s parents and positively contributing to their community. Nonetheless, they might be constrained in their navigational capacity to explore alternative futures without the support of family, teachers, and society, and availability of meaningful opportunities. The youths’ accounts further demonstrate that personal conditions, especially family economic situations, are mainly limiting, and societal support and teachers’ guidance are crucial for economically disadvantaged youth to pursue their desired futures. Therefore, I argue that there is a need to shift the emphasis from equality of resources in the Ethiopian context to equality of capabilities (real opportunities). This includes considering familial and socio-economic conditions influencing students’ education and their educational aspirations. Keywords: capability approach; aspirations; agency; the capability to aspire; the capacity to aspire; narrative inquiry; Ethiopia; Sub-Saharan Africa