Challenges of Teaching History in Multi-Ethnic Countries

An Italian anthropologist Carlo Conti-Rossini called Ethiopia "un museo di populi"- a museum of peoples. It is to describe the ethnic, linguistic and cultural heterogeneity of the peoples living within the confines of Ethiopia's borders. Even though, being multiethnic nation has its own advantage, the existing multiethnic and multilingual situation of Ethiopia has become a challenge to its education system. Mainly social studies, specifically history education become the first victim in this regard. The main objective of this study is to identify factors that affect the teaching of national history in Ethiopian academic institutions particularly in Ethiopian High schools and public universities. The result of the findings reveal that the first and the most challenge was absence of national consensus on national history. Different Ethnic groups of the country were mistreated and systematically excluded from the country's past. These situations provoke them to raise resentment on Ethiopian history. They began raising questions on Ethiopian history like who is an Ethiopian; who wrote what to whom? Additionally, the government policy has been among the topmost factor.