4.5 Observation Report The third instrument used in this study was observation. The researcher has used structured
observation to find out the practices of diversity management in the selected schools.
Observations were made two times and some points were recorded on field note. It was observed
that students and teachers with different religions live together.
Concerning language, most of the school society was observed using Amharic language only. In
the closed-ended item of the questionnaire, half of the principals reported that sometimes many
languages are spoken. On the contrary, most of the teachers and some of the students have
reported different languages are rarely and never spoken in the schools.
Thus, during observation, using different languages spoken was not observed. It is clear that
Amharic is the official language of the Government. That is the reason why the language is used
widely.
Diversity atmosphere of the school concerning different cultures was difficult to observe.
This was because the students were wearing their uniforms and the teachers were wearing
gowns. During the interview time, it was reported that students show their culture once a year
during the Nations and Nationalities Day only. In the questionnaire, the principals have reported
that cultures are given recognition sometimes. On the other hand, the more than half of the
teachers and the students reported that cultures are never given more attention/recognition.
The students were observed playing in the field together without discrimination. Besides the
teachers were observed communication with each other in cafes, recreation areas, etc.
It was also observed that there are group-learning activities in the schools. Most of the students
work in 1 to 5 groups. This helps the students to learn together forgetting their differences.
Regarding religious diversity, nothing was observed. This is because as schools are secular, there
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is no religious activity. However, Muslims and Christians were observed playing, discussing and
eating together.
However, from the questionnaire data, it was reported that few members of the school saw
problems rarely.