Participation of Primary School Teachers in Continuous Professional Development Opportunities and Its Impact: Teachers and Education Leaders Perspective

INTRODUCTION

Nations around the world has emphasized quality education as a major goal of their educational reform initiatives (Borko, 2004; (Desimone et al, 2006). It seems a general consensus that quality education is needed today more than ever before due to the demand of high level knowledge and skill which are prerequisite for the lives of the 21st century. In response to this concern, many reform initiatives have focused on the quality of classroom teaching and more specifically on the teacher as the key to improving learner performance (Borko, H.; Jacobs, J. and Koellner, K., 2010; Desimone et al, 2006; Guskey, 2002; Knight & Wiseman, 2005; Marcelo, C., 2009) According Borko, H.; Jacobs, J. and Koellner, K., 2010, teachers should be given effective learning opportunities- opportunities that are grounded in a conception of learning to teach as a lifelong endeavour –and designed around a continuum of teacher learning so that schools can provide effective learning opportunities for students. This clearly implies that for teachers to be effective professional in their professional career there must be continuous and sustained professional development opportunities in which every teachers should engaged in. Professional development is conceptualized differently by different individuals even though the ultimate theme converges on improving students learning. As noted by Megginson and Whitaker (2007) cited in Crawford, K. (2009), continuing professional development is a process by which individuals take control of their own learning and development, by engaging in an

teachers review, renew and extend their commitment as change agents to the moral purposes of teaching; and by which they acquire and develop their knowledge, skills and attitudes. While there seems a general consensus about effect of professional development to improve quality education, it is also reported that not all professional development reforms have been reported effective to bring on teachers change and students learning (Yoon, Duncan, Lee, Scarloss, & Shapley, 2007) cited in Whitworth, B. &. Chiu, J. (2004). By reviewing various literatures, these authors stated that effective professional development should be active learning, a strong content focus, be coherent and of a significant duration, and involve collective participation. Further, they highlighted that professional development can support active learning in a variety of ways, including: observing other teachers, practicing what has been learned and receiving feedback, reviewing and analyzing student work, leading and participating in discussions, applying their new knowledge to lesson plans, or participating in activities as students (Birman et al., 2000). Recent professional development literature criticises the professional development models, what they call traditional professional development such as work shop for its top-down nature and limited scope (Hoban, G. & Erickson, G., 2004). As argued by Borko, H.; Jacobs, J. and Koellner, K., 2010, a recent shifts in the prominence of ideas about the nature of cognition, learning, and teaching – from behavioural to cognitive to situative – are, induce a paradigm shift in ideas about teacher learning and professional development. The authors further explain that the traditional approaches are generally viewed as overly fragmented, not connected closely enough to classroom practice, and out of alignment with current theories of learning and school reform. They are being replaced by approaches that are more closely aligned with constructivist and situative theories and reform efforts; specifically they are grounded in classroom practice and involve the formation of professional learning communities. What is most critical is that professional development should be contextualized and encourage active involvement of teachers in the learning process. The focus in most of the current professional development literature is on providing a long-term, inquiry or learner-centered structure that supports teachers as they collaboratively develop the professional knowledge they need to use in their own context (Borko, H.; Jacobs, J. and Koellner, K., 2010). of less formal, ongoing, job-embedded professional development activities-study groups, action research, collaborative planning, curriculum development, structured observations, peer coaching, mentoring, and so on. Indeed, there are different types of professional development activities that teachers can participate. As stated above, these various types of professional development activities may be planned and implemented by the individual teacher or school based on the needs of the teacher and the school. This is what is termed as alternative professional development (Ozdemir, 2013). The alternative view of professional development which provides autonomy and control for teachers and schools (Villegas- Reimers, 2003) demands teachers to be committed and responsible for their professional learning and development. Not only, the commitment of the individual teacher, but also the commitment of the colleagues and school leaders are essential to the effectiveness of teachers continuous professional development. In the last decades education in Ethiopia has been experiencing a period of rapid and multiple reforms. One of the main areas that have undergone dramatic change is the implementation of active learning and continuous assessment. In line with this reform, teacher education has got wider attention. The Policy framework of the New Education and Training policy recognized teacher education as a key issue to materialize the ambitious goals of equitable quality education (MoE, 1994).

Recent literature to a large extent acknowledges that the quality of teachers, among others, is a significant factor which determines the quality of learners‟ experience and achievement (Hendricks, R. and Tom Bisschoff, 2009. The success of reform initiatives depends on the quality of teachers and as a result the professional development of teachers has become a major focal point of such initiatives (Boyle et al 2005: Desimone et al, 2006) cited in Steyn, 2008. In Ethiopia, the history of teacher education dated back in 1940‟s (Tesfaye, 2014). Since then the development and growth of teacher education was slow and suffering from various constraints. In 1991, the present government of Ethiopia took power and dismantled the socio-economic and political structure of the past military government. Among other reform, the education sector undertook major reforms. Education was a priority in the national agenda of the country (World Bank 2013) and new education and training policy was launched in 1994 (MoE, 1994). According to READ

literature today, including an emphasis on “active learning, problem solving, and student centered teaching methods” (MOE,2009). In the past times, the education sector was suffering from massive multifaceted problems, mainly related to relevance, equity, quality and accessibility (Teshome 2006) To realize the implementation the new education and training policy, a development of a 20 year Master Plan and a Five Year Short Term Plan was developed. The first Education Sector Development Plan (ESDP I) was developed in 1997. The introduction of the new education and training policy (ETP), which was quite different from previous system, suggests that active learning and continuous assessment methods would be the major priority of the curriculum at all levels of schooling. This paradigm shift from teacher centred method of teaching to student centered method inherently called for well qualified and competent teachers who can translate the new curriculum in to practice. The new educational reform envisaged to provide equitable education and the government renewed its commitment for „Education For All goal‟. The Education and Training Policy aimed to achieve four educational goals namely: quality, access, relevance, and equity. Against the backdrop of the previous teacher education, the new policy framework set priority for teacher development program, among others. Pre-service teacher education program was proved to be ineffective to produce teachers that the new system demanded for. It was, thus, imperative to transform the then teacher education system (MoE, 2002). Reform initiatives were undergone to transform teacher education both quantitatively and qualitatively. A structural and curricular realignment was made in all Ethiopia‟s teacher education activities. A number of teacher education institutes were established to increase the number of qualified teachers commensurate with steady growth of students enrolment. In this regard unprecedented achievement was achieved although this quantitative achievement of the rise of students and teachers resulted in a complex problem of quality issue. Some literature evidences indicate that the quality of teacher education and teachers in particular is poor. As noted by MoE (2002) teacher education was not given due consideration by the past regimes and this was possibly one of the major factor for poor quality education. In response to the call for improving teacher education system, Teacher Education System Overhaul (TESO) was initiated in 2003 to develop the objectives and strategies of the teacher‟s education. TESO consists of a national framework for teacher education system overhaul and a national curriculum guideline for pre-service teacher outcomes that the country ambitiously envisaged. The emphasis given to teacher education and development was also reflected by government‟s attempt to introduce other reforms such as General Education Quality Improvement program (GEQIP) in 2008 which consists of six packages; Teacher Development Program (TDP) was one of such components. Under the second phase of TDP, begun in 2005, in-service teacher training was focused on continuous professional development (CPD) (MoE, 2009). It was aimed that TDP would support the Government‟s efforts to increase the supply of effective teacher educators, teachers and facilitators in primary and secondary education through the implementation of teacher education, and in-service and pre-service teacher development programs. To improve the quality of teachers as well as education, MOE initiated a training program for teachers of primary and secondary schools under Education Sector Development Program (ESDP) in 2005 called Continuous Professional Development (CPD) (Amhad, S., 2013). The CPD framework aims to raise student achievement and learning as part of a career-long process of improving knowledge, skills and attitudes of teachers, centered on the local context and particularly classroom practice. It was a mandatory program for all schools at all levels. CPD in Ethiopia is two types: Upgrading and updating. In the upgrading programs, opportunities are in place for teachers to upgrade themselves through summer, evening and distance program–this was later discouraged for criticism of poor quality. This type of program is used synonymously with in-service education where teachers after the initial professional certification are involved to improve their knowledge, skills, and attitudes in order that they can teach their students effectively (Villegas-Reimers, 2003). However, in-service education can also be used differently by different educators based on its purpose. Updating is a program which focuses on refreshing and updating of knowledge, skills and values of teachers to keep abreast with ever changing reality of the world. It is a career-long process of improving knowledge, skills, and attitudes centered on the local context and, particularly, classroom practice. This type of CPD has gained wider popularity worldwide today (Fraser, C.; Kennedy,A.; Reid, L. & Mckinney,S. (2007) According to Wabule (2016) in the teaching profession, initial training is no longer seen as enough due to rapid changes in technology, social structures, ideologies and the increasing diversity of the classrooms. Agreeing to the above Knight

with all the competencies that are needed in the classroom, especially the procedural skills, which primarily develop in practical settings. There is often a huge disparity between the types of skills and knowledge taught in pre-service programs and the realities of workplace practice (Meijer, de Graaf, &Meirink, 2011; Yayli, 2008) cited in Allen, J. M. and Suzie Elizabeth Wright,S., 2014). It seems that the reforms that undergone in Ethiopia is not unique. The need for CPD in Ethiopia is very decisive. The inadequacy of pre-service education to produce well equipped teachers is apparently evident. Among others, the quality of candidates who join teacher education, and shortage of finance and facilities constrain teacher education especially in primary schools. Some literature, such as MoE 2012; Tesfaye, 2013; World Bank; 2013 confirm that Ethiopian schools are suffering from lack of competent teachers who can translate the curriculum into practice. It is indicated that teachers lack both subject matter and pedagogical knowledge and skills. Thus the government‟s commitment to give emphasis for CPD seems urgent and rational. Having large teaching force in the country, the Ministry should bridge the knowledge and skill gap of teachers on continuous basis. The new CPD in Ethiopia is underpinned on school and cluster-based professional development of teachers. This model of CPD demands teachers to be committed and take initiative to engage in continuous learning. They are expected to identify their needs, prioritize and plan how to address it. Teachers‟ professional development need should also be aligned with professional development needs of the school. Indeed, teachers need the support of the school leadership and colleagues to effectively implement CPD (MoE 2008). The role of cluster schools is also critical in this regard. In Ethiopia, recently a number of schools (Usually 5/6) are clustered or grouped together having one center as a coordinator. This cluster center is responsible to facilitate the CPD opportunities for teachers. Experience sharing is a typical purpose of the cluster center. The new CPD is also aimed at collaborative learning of teachers. Teachers are encouraged to engage in mentoring/coaching and group work in order to learn each other. Teacher learning is most likely to occur when teachers have opportunities to collaborate with professional peers both within and outside the school (King and Newman, 2001). Agreeing to the this (Lee 2005) cited in Steyn, G.(2011) contended that effective PD (Professional Development) of teachers is embedded in daily school activities, adapted to meet the particular school contexts and continued over a period of time. The school base CPD is against the training model which is top-down and

2005).

Studies by Daniel, et al (2013) which was conducted in Addis Ababa found out that CPD was constrained by lack of understanding of teachers toward CPD, shortage of budget and lack of incentives. Obviously these constraints are embedded in in the implementation of any educational reforms. A number of educational reforms have been introduced into our educational system for the last two decades but most of them were not successful. TESO Kedir, (2007) TESO is a good example. The failure of such reforms might be the nature of the reforms, shortage of inputs, lack of effective leadership, lack of support, etc. Dereje (2015) conducted a qualitative study on CPD and concluded that CPD was not effective; it did not bring impact on teachers teaching practice and students learning. . Given the considerable emphasis for CPD at national and local level, the study of CPD further deems necessary and timely. The purpose of this study was to investigate the CPD experiences and perceived impacts in primary school context. The study was guided by the following basic questions.

1. What types of CPD are experienced by teachers? 2. What contents were emphasized by different CPD experiences? 3. How do teachers perceive the impact of CPD on teachers change and students learning? 4. Do gender, teachers subject area and teaching experience significantly affect teachers participation in CPD and their perception toward the impact of CPD?

The purpose of this study was to investigate the continuous professional development opportunities available for teachers and their perception towards the impact. A mixed research approach was employed in this study. Both quantitative and qualitative data were collected by the help of questionnaire survey, interview and focus group guides. The use of quantitative and qualitative approaches by mixing both approaches in a study is more than simply collecting and analysing both kinds of data for it also involves the use of both approaches in tandem so that the overall strength

The population of the study were primary school teachers, school principals, supervisors and Woreda and Zone education officers. The quantitative data were collected from 624 primary teachers who were selected using stratified random sampling technique through close ended and open ended questionnaires. Interview and FGD were conducted with selected teachers, principals, supervisors and education officers who were selected purposively. Data analyses were two types. The quantitative data were coded and analysed by the help of SPSS software using mean, t-test and one way ANOVA. The qualitative data were analysed thematically and triangulated with the quantitative data.

In this section the results of the study were presented and discussed. The quantitative data were displayed in tables and followed by analysis and discussion. For each theme, qualitative data were triangulated with quantitative findings.

Table 1 shows the mean, standard deviation and t-test values of teachers‟ experience/participation in different CPD activities. Teachers were asked to rate their level of agreement about their participation in different CPD activities on a four point Liket scale, where 4=usually, 3=sometimes, 2= rarely, 1= never. As seen from the table, teachers participated most in study groups/group activities (M=3.58, SD=0.75) and informal dialogue with colleagues (M=3.42, SD=0.79). Self-directed study (M=3.11, SD=0.99), peer observation (M=3.09, SD=0.85) and Work Shadowing (M=2.95, Sd=0.956) were also CPD activities that teachers participated sometimes. Work shop/seminar (M=2.30, SD=1.01), visiting other schools (M=2.15, SD=0.88) and action research (M=2.11, SD=1.05) were the three CPD activities that teachers participated almost rarely. works. However; this trend is disliked by teachers and other individuals for fear that it is politically motivated. This „one to five‟ group formation works not only for teachers but for students, other civil servants and even for the wider community. For the last couple of years, teachers were made to be organized in „one-to-five group either based on subject or across different subjects. Therefore, teachers‟ high participation in study group can be related to the practice of „one-to-five group. Since school-based CPD has been encouraged in Ethiopian schools, action research, sharing experience by visiting other schools, mentoring, etc, are assumed to be essential CPD activities for teachers to engage in. However; the result also implied that action research and visiting other school for experience sharing (MOE, 2009) were less likely participated by teachers. The mean result showed that teachers experienced these two activities almost rarely. These types of CPD are recently well acknowledged by researchers as the most helpful experiences of teachers to learn together and finally to build learning community at school level. Action research is a new approach which enables teachers to solve the teaching learning problems individually or in group. The recent CPD approach in Ethiopia put action research at the center of CPD. Theoretically; action research is a buzz phrase in Ethiopian schools for the last two decades. This finding can give hint for the theory practice gap in other reforms too. Similarly, according to the current structure of schools in the country, four or five schools are clustered/ grouped together based on locality to facilitate CPD practices. One school is assigned as a cluster center to coordinate teachers‟ participation in CPD and other activities. One of the most valued CPD opportunities in cluster center is sharing best experiences among schools through school visits with no /least cost. OECD (1998) cited in MacNeil, J.D. (2004) suggested that teachers share experiences and resources with each other within and amongst schools). Paradoxically, the result is against the expectation of the policy. This again shows the big gap between what is expected and what is practically observed. Teachers low participation in school visit may be explained by lack of opportunity to arrange the visit due to shortage of time or lack of awareness of the school leaders and cluster supervisors. On the other hand, teacher low participation in action research can possibly be explained by lack of knowledge and skill of action research or lack of motivation to conduct research

that there was no significant difference between male and female teachers on their participation in CPD, except that there was significant difference between male and female on „peer observation (t=3.92, P<0.05). The mean of females response (M=3.21) was higher than mean response of males (M=2.94). This can imply that female teachers are ready to learn from each other. This finding is not supported by the study of Daniel, et al. (2013) which found out that males teachers are more reflective than female teachers.

Respondents were asked to rate the extent of contents emphasized in their CPD experiences using a four point likert scale where 1= very low emphasis, 2=low emphasis, 3, high emphasis and 4=Very high emphasis. The result shows that continuous assessment (M=3.57, SD=0.72) and instructional/ techniques/methods (M=3.56, SD=0.71) were the two highly emphasised contents in the CPD activities. Subject matter/content (M=3.25, SD 0.92) and instructional media (M=3.26, SD=0.83) were rated at moderate level. The least emphasized contents were (Cross cutting issues such as gender equality, HIV/AIDS (M=2.8, SD=0.94) and curriculum planning and evaluation (M=2.78, SD=0.97). A research by Tantranont, N. (2009) found out a bit different finding about the contents of CPD participated by teachers in England. It was revealed that content knowledge of a specific subject area was the most common content of CPD participated by teachers followed by teaching techniques which is similar to the present study. Indeed, content knowledge of a specific area is vitally critical for any teacher to teach effectively. Especially, in regard to Ethiopian context, most teachers lack the requisite knowledge of the subject matter as well as pedagogy to teach effectively (MoE, 2002, Tesfaye, 2014). The inadequacy of pre- to focus on content knowledge in the CPD activities. From day to day observations, it is also evident that there are many complaints from students, school leaders, parents, and others about the knowledge deficit of school teachers. Thus, it seems true that Ethiopian teachers CPD should focus on content knowledge. In fact, pedagogical knowledge and skill is equally essential. As stipulated in the policy, active learning method and continuous assessment approaches are the hub of the reform. It is well elaborated that the vision of producing problem solving and critical thinking citizens can be produced as a result of the application of learner centred methodology and continuous assessment (MOE 1994). Generally, the result showed that all mean results were above average where the least Mean is 2.78. However, it can be inferred that curriculum planning and evaluation is less emphasized in teachers CPD activities. Curriculum is the core of all teaching learning process. Teachers should have better understanding of the school curriculum. The relative low emphasis given to curriculum planning and evaluation can possible explained by the fact that the participation of teachers in curriculum development is low due to the tradition view of top down curriculum development.

Table 3 presents the mean, standard deviation and independent t-test of teachers perception toward the impact of CPD on teachers knowledge, skill and values and students learning and gender

Changes in teaching practice (M=3.10, SD= 1.24), improved teachers competencies (3.05, SD=1.22), improve teachers Knowledge (M=3.03, P=1.16) and attitude to teaching (M=3.00, SD=1.34) were rated nearly at average. Increased learning outcomes of the students (M=2.53, SD=1.18), improve incentives (M=2.42, SD=1.20) and salary increase (M=2.05, SD.0.99) were the least rated respectively. They are rated nearly in the range of less significant impact. Furthermore, participants rated the overall school improvement (M=2.95, P=1.15) as a result of CPD nearly at neutral position. The results implied that the impact of CPD on teachers and students as well as overall school improvement was not significant. The result of t-test showed that there were no gender differences on the perception of teachers toward the impact of CPD except on two items; salary increase (t=2.06, p<0.005) and increased learning outcome (t=-2.16, P==0.05). With regard to improved learning outcome, female teachers (M=2.62) rated higher than males (M=2.41) whereas for salary increase male teachers (M=2.15) rated higher than females (M=1.98). This finding is not supported by the survey study of (GTCE, 2016) cited in Tantranont (2009) that reported female teachers more than males were positive about their CPD experiences. As the finding implied, CPD has not brought either very significant or significant impact. The significant number of respondents agreed to neutral position. That means they are not sure whether CPD had impact or not. And the majority of the teachers perceived that CPD had not impacted teachers‟ knowledge and practice as well as students learning outcomes. This can be explained that although teachers participated in some school based CPD activities to a certain extent, the implementation of CPD activities might not be effective. This may be related to lack of support, attitudinal problems and lack of motivation of teachers. This finding is supported by Daniel et al (2013) which found out that CPD is constrained by lack of sound understanding of the CPD, implementation inconsistencies, lack of budget and lack of incentives . The qualitative data also supported the finding. The data gathered form teachers, principals, supervisors and experts implied that CPD was not effectively implemented and as a result significant impact was not observed. Almost, in a similar tone and idea, they reiterated that CPD has been implemented poorly. There is no adequate professional as well as financial and material support for CPD. In one FGD, the following was reported: “CPD is neither alive nor dead. Rhetorically, at different education hierarchy, the concept CPD is clear understanding about the purposes of CPD. That is why there is no clear structure and support system for teachers related to CPD. At this time CPD seems neglected compared to some time ago when it was introduced in to our school system. An education officer at Zone said: “There is great confusion toward CPD. I myself as an education expert and responsible body to support teachers do not have full trust about the usefulness of CPD. The practice has been in place for more than a decade in our schools. Through time CPD has been declining in practice, even in rhetoric, challenged by teachers and lacked sustainable support from the responsible bodies. In some schools teachers ignored CPD; no individual as well as school plan. Without plan we do not expect effective CPD implementation/practice. Even those schools which are implementing CPD, practically it is poorly implemented. It is not beyond mere report. I can say teachers, the school community and even supervisors and other education officers too do not have clear understanding of CPD and believe in the positive impact of CPD.” A teacher interview said, “I think CPD does not bring any influence on my promotion prospect or on improving students learning. There are teachers who did not participate in CPD for the last two years. I could not see any difference between these teachers and me. I had not got any additional benefit as a result of my participation in different CPD activities. Generally, CPD is not useful for me. I think it is intentionally introduced into our school system to add teachers‟ burden. On the ground, there is no CPD, but you can hear colourful report about CPD.” Another extract from another teacher was: “CPD is nothing but it is a burden for teachers. To your surprise, no teacher has trust about the usefulness of CPD. Gradually, the participation of teachers have declined. We do not see any change on teachers performance or students achievement although teachers have been participating in different CPD activities. Of course, the participation is not effective. Everybody knows this. But since it is mandatory to participate, I participate. The same is true for my friends. The program has no any responsible body who can responsibly support teachers and manage it.” From the above excerpts it seems that the value teachers give to CPD and support given to CPD is poor. This can mainly be due to lack of proper understanding of CPD which in turn affects the

CPD to be effective not only the motivation and commitment of individual teachers but school wide and external support structure should be strengthened on sustainable basis. One experienced teacher respondent expressed his ideas as follows: “If you ask all teachers whether CPD can contribute for the improvement of teaching learning process, you will get the same answer-“No contribution”. For most of us it is headache to think about CPD. Majority of us think that CPD is nothing but it is an intrigue of the government to add stress and worry for teachers. Throughout my experience I have learned how teaching profession has gone down from the top to the bottom. In the Imperial regime, teaching was one of the most prestigious and respected profession among Ethiopian civil servants. But now it is the least of all. The poor salaries we receive are one of the major causes for low social status and lose of professional identity of teaching profession.” It appears that the information obtained from different respondents converge at lack of proper understanding of CPD and negative attitude established toward CPD by teachers. And hence, the effectiveness of CPD in the study area is far from reality. The poor attitude of teachers toward CPD compounded by lack of support structure and low salary can clearly influence teacher‟s participation in CPD. Therefore, it is safe to conclude that CPD did not bring the desired change even though there has been the practice in schools for a couple of years.

One way ANOVA was run to see whether there was difference between different subject teachers and teaching experiences in teacher‟s participation in CPD and their perception on the impact of CPD.

showed that there were no significant differences amongst different subject teachers participation in CPD (F=1.54, P >0. 05) and their perception toward the impact of CPD (F=1.17, P > 0.05). This might imply that teachers in general had no proper understanding of CPD and their attitude toward CPD was also found negative. As found from the qualitative data, teachers do not have clear understanding of CPD and most respondents were found to dislike CPD. Therefore; it can be concluded that lack of clear understanding and negative attitude to CPD influenced teacher‟s participation and their perception toward the impact of CPD. The response from principals and supervisors also support the above idea. It was implied repeatedly that teachers do not have interest to participate in CPD. Teachers consider their participation in CPD as a burden and wastage of time.

The table presents the mean difference between different teaching experiences levels in teachers participation in different CPD activities and their impact on teaching and learning outcomes. The result shows that there were no significant differences amongst different teaching experience levels on participation in CPD (F=1.54, P >0.05) and impact of CPD (F=1.17, P > 0.05). This agrees with the previous study and finding which suggest that in most cases there were no significant differences between levels of experience with respect to types of CPD undertaken (Tantranont, 2009). Moreover; what is unique in Ethiopia is that teachers lack of professional identity and low motivation and moral (Fekede and Tynjala, P., 2015) and this can influence all teachers regardless of experience levels in the same way with regard to CPD and other professional responsibilities.

teachers engaged in to some extent in school based CPD activities such as working together/ group activity which is called one-to-five group, informal dialogue, mentoring, self-directed study, peer observation, etc. It seems that the current CPD practice in Ethiopia complements the international literature that calls for school based CPD which is collaborative, situated and on-going. School based CPD demands teachers and school leaders to take the leading role in identifying the CPD needs, planning and implementing in variety of ways. As it can be inferred from this study, however, teachers themselves and the school leaders lacked clear perception toward CPD and this in turn influenced their attitude towards CPD negatively. It is clearly implied that teachers lose interest and professional responsibility to participate in CPD. Although the result showed certain degree of participation, such participation of teachers was not self-initiated and the implementation was undertaken without enthusiasm and motivation. It appeared that teachers participation in group study, mentoring and peer classroom observation (to some extent but not adequate) were not undertaken effectively but for the sake of formality to conform to the education bureaucracy of the present system. The study also indicated that teachers participation in action research was found weak. The descriptive statistics showed that the mean for action research was 2.11 on a four point Likert scale which was below the mean and hence this indicated that teachers undertook action research rarely. This finding does not concur to the CPD frame work of Ethiopia which was launched in 2009 and the international literature which have given emphasis for action research as an essential avenue in teacher‟s professional development. According to Carr & Kemmis (1986) cited in Cabaroglu, N.(2014) action research has been found to be an effective professional developmental tool that can promote the necessary active involvement, reflection and development of problem-solving skills that lead to change. Reflective practitioner is at the center of action research. While action research demands reflective thinking and motivation to improve knowledge and skill, the reality in Ethiopia is different. It is difficult to find motivated and enthusiastic teacher professional in Ethiopia. Limited literature highlight that the motivation of teachers in Ethiopia is very low like other low income developing countries (Bennell, P. and Akyeampong, K.,2007). From the study results it was revealed that gender, teachers teaching experience and major area of teachers did not significantly affect the participation of teachers in CPD. Similarly, such teacher characteristics did not bring significant difference on This study also attempted to explore the commonly emphasized contents of CPD. Accordingly, it was found that active learning/ learner cantered pedagogy and continuous assessment methods were more popular contents than others. Content knowledge was rated next to these two contents. Indeed, active learning and continuous assessment methods are the top priority of the education policy (MOE, 1994). This is not unique for Ethiopia. Recently active learning and continuous assessment have gained wider acceptance worldwide. Nevertheless, an effective teacher needs both content knowledge and pedagogy to succeed in his/her classroom teaching. The case is very crucial especially in Ethiopia since teachers might not be well prepared in the pre-service education programs. Elsewhere in this paper, it was highlighted that in Ethiopia teachers are not equipped with adequate content knowledge as well pedagogy. This claimed was also confirmed in this research. An interviewee in one school said: there are teachers whom students do not like to inter their class to teach. When these kinds of teachers went to class, students close the door of the classroom in order not to allow them to enter. This is because of the poor competencies of the teachers.” There seems a general consensus that goal of CPP is to enhance the knowledge, skill and attitude of teachers and finally to promote learning outcomes. However; in this study, it was revealed that CPD respondents perceived that CPD did not impact teaching as well as learning. Put it simply, CPP does not benefit to improve the quality of teaching and learning. This result is support by different literature for example, MoE, 2012; Tesfaye, 2014; World, 2013 which pointed out that the quality teaching in Ethiopians schools is poor due to lack of teachers to employ learner centered teaching methods. The poor quality of teaching is also related to students low score in national assessment exams (Tesfaye, 2013). Moreover; despite most teachers (if not all) participated in CPD at school, it appears that teachers did not recognize CPD as helpful opportunity to improve their competence and their profession. It is implied that CPD is suffering from structural/organizational and personal challenges. The government‟s ambitious effort and goal to raise standard of teachers and learning outcomes are not supported by clearly defined organizational functions. It was confirmed that either at school or woreda level, there were no appropriate personnel to lead and support CPD. The school principals and education experts at Woreda or Zone neither had the knowledge and skill nor interest to support CPD. There appears that those different education

take ownership for CPD.

The recent shift away from the traditional CPD model that is one-shot workshop or transmission model to school based CPD requires committed school leaders and teachers. Therefore; school principals need to have better understanding of CPD and their capacity to lead and support CPD should be enhanced. Starting from school up to the higher education hierarchy (Woreda, Zone and Education Bureau), well defined organizational structure should be established to support CPD professionally and materially. Concerted effort should be done to raise the understanding of teachers toward CPD. Furthermore, the context of CPD should be conducive for teaches to take responsibility for their professional development and students learning. It seems that incentives and salary issues should be reconsidered by the government. It will be also very helpful to integrate CPD with teachers‟ career progression. External support from university or colleges and other stakeholders should also be strengthened.

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Research Scholar, Department of Education, Andhra University