Across Ethiopia, the familiar morning scene has long been defined by the first school bell ringing around 8:30 a.m., filling the roads and neighborhoods near schools with streams of young people in uniform. Recently, however, that trend has changed in Addis Ababa. Now, at 7:00 a.m., as the city still shakes off its early morning haze, Grade 11 and 12 students are already bent over their desks. For many schools in the capital, the day now begins earlier than ever before.
Both teachers and school principals approached by The Reporter Magazine were uncomfortable discussing the details of the program, thus hindering the search for more elaborated information. The shift is reportedly part of a sweeping strategy by the Addis Ababa Education Bureau to lift the national examination scores of Grade 12 students—scores that in recent years have laid bare a troubled system.
Since 2022, Ethiopia’s national school-leaving examination has been administered with tighter security and a more rigorous marking scheme. The results have been stark. In 2022, only 3.3 percent of the nearly 900,000 candidates scored 50 percent or above, the minimum needed for university entry. The following year, the figure slipped to 3.2 percent. In 2024, there was a modest rise to 5.4 percent, and in 2025 the pass rate reached 8.4 percent—48,929 students out of 585,882 who sat for the exam.
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The numbers also reveal deep disparities. Just 5.2 percent of social science students passed this year, compared with 11.4 percent in the natural sciences. More than 1,200 schools recorded not a single passing student; only 50 achieved a full pass rate. And each year since the reforms began, more than a thousand schools have produced no successful candidates at all.
Those persistent gaps have, according to stakeholders, pushed the Addis Ababa Education Bureau into experimentation. This academic year, it launched a demanding new structure for Grade 11 and 12 students, adding three layers of instruction to the regular school day: a before-class program, after-class sessions, and Saturday “cluster” classes.
The before-class forum runs on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 7:00 to 8:30 a.m., ahead of the normal timetable. After-class sessions follow on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 3:00 to 4:00 p.m.
Saturdays are the most intensive: from 8:30 a.m. until 3:00 p.m., top-ranked students—those placing first through twenty-fifth in their schools—are gathered into cluster centers. There, students from several schools study together using modules designed specifically for the national exam, covering material from Grades 9 through 12.
But inside classrooms, the picture is more complicated.
A teacher at a government school, who requested anonymity described the system as having practical challenges. “The before-class sessions start at seven, but students often arrive late because of transportation problems,” he said. “After-class programs come after seven regular periods, when students are already tired and hungry.”
He further argues that an inclusive approach, based on the individual interests of students, would have been a better approach in order for the program to be effective.
“The initiative is good in theory,” he said, “but the forced implementation limits its impact.”
Tirusew Tefera, a professor and laureate from the Addis Ababa University College of Education and Behavioral Studies, gives a guarded endorsement to the overall initiative but insists that full consultation with stakeholders—including parents, educational professionals, and teachers—is paramount. He stressed the importance of engaging stakeholders, specifically mentioning parents, educational professionals, and teachers. “Their opinions matter. Their thoughts should be included when programs are designed,” he noted. Similarly, the professor stresses that the program must be “flexible and inclusive, not selective,” noting that students just outside the top tier (e.g., ranked 26th or 27th) may also be very capable.
Professor Tirussew also advises that preparation must commence at the earliest educational levels, such as pre-primary school, to build the requisite knowledge and skills, rather than starting only in Grades 11 and 12.
Regarding teacher participation, the teacher noted that the system depends heavily on voluntary involvement. The program is open only to teachers who apply, he explained, with selection based on a competitive process rather than contractual obligation. While this allows motivated teachers to step forward, he said, it also permits instructors who have never taught Grade 11 or 12 to join simply because they meet the criteria.
He also told The Reporter Magazine that promised teacher compensation remains uncertain, which, according to him, seriously affects the productivity and motivation of teachers.
An economics teacher from another government school in Addis Ababa offered a fuller view of the system in practice, particularly the cluster model and its teaching methods. The Saturday modules, he said, draw on material from Grades 9 through 12 because the national exam spans those years. For Grade 11 students, the material is trimmed to Grades 9 to 11.
He explained how clusters are built. “If our school is the center school, then top-ranked students from nearby schools—those placing first to twenty-fifth—are grouped together. By selecting about seven students from each school, you form a classroom of around 40 students in the center,” he said.
He also drew distinctions between the different forums. “The after-class sessions aren’t normal lectures. Students help each other, solving worksheets and past exam questions. The teacher simply facilitates,” he said. The before-class sessions are lecture-based, and the teacher teaches directly, according to the teacher.
Regular testing, he noted, is one of the program’s strongest motivators. “Students take exams every fourth Saturday from the module, and that motivates them,” he said.
Teacher selection, he explained, is competitive and merit-based. “Only selected teachers handle those classes,” he said. Student performance in their regular classes helps determine which teachers are chosen, and students often express preferences for certain instructors.
But the workload is heavy. “On Saturdays I might teach three classes, each an hour and a half. It is tiring. Teaching three Saturday classes is like teaching six regular periods,” he said. “It is time-consuming and not profitable financially at all.” Still, he said the progress he sees in students—and the trust they place in him—keeps him committed. “Even though it is tiring, it is better than doing nothing for the students,” he said.
He also acknowledged concerns raised by parents during a recent meeting. “Parents said their children are stressed, especially with the full-day Saturday program. They were worried about the after-class sessions, too, because students are already tired after regular lessons,” he said.
The teachers warn that the success may hinge not on how many hours students spend in the classroom, but on whether those hours inspire rather than exhaust them.
Students’ experiences echo many of the teachers’ concerns—and add sharp, personal detail. One Grade 12 student, who asked not to be named, said the extended schedule has thinned his attention rather than strengthened it. “It’s very tiring,” he said. “Being in the classroom until five in the afternoon makes it hard to focus. The early mornings also leave us half awake. We need time to study by ourselves.”
Alemu Kabe, a Grade 11 student, described the strain of long commutes and the risks of traveling before dawn. He lives far from his school.
“I have to wake up around five to arrive on time. It is dark and not safe,” he said. “When I get back home, it’s already late, and I fall asleep without studying.”
Mikias Tadele, another Grade 11 student, said the after-class sessions are the most useful because they focus on worksheets and past exam questions. “Doing worksheets helps us prepare for the national exams,” he said. But Saturdays, he admitted, are a different story. “The Saturday classes are not enjoyable. I would rather use Saturdays to review lessons on my own.” A Grade 12 student similarly said the Saturday schedule takes away time for family responsibilities and the rest she needs to concentrate.
Around the world, countries have taken vastly different routes to academic excellence—offering useful context for Ethiopia’s experiment. South Korea is famous for its relentless study culture, where many students attend regular school by day and private schools by night. Its exam results and university enrollment rates are among the highest in the world, but the long hours have fueled widespread anxiety, burnout, and national debates over student well-being.
Singapore consistently ranks at the top of international assessments in math, science, and reading. Its success is built on frequent exams, rigorous instruction, and early academic streaming. The model produces high achievers—along with high stress. In recent years, Singapore has begun reforming its system to reduce pressure and encourage creativity.
Finland, often celebrated as the countermodel, has no national exams until the end of upper secondary school. Education is free, teachers are highly trained and trusted, and classrooms emphasize learning over testing.
For the Addis Ababa Education Bureau, the new approach seems determined to confront years of low exam performance. Yet, the initiative’s details remain unclear and poorly communicated.
The Reporter Magazine’s effort to obtain more elaborated information about the approach was unsuccessful due to a decline from education bureau officials. One official said, “I don’t have anything to say about it to media at this time.” Similarly, the effort to get information from the Ministry of Education about the program’s details—including whether it is a nationwide initiative of the Ministry—was unsuccessful due to the Ministry’s unresponsiveness.
For now, classrooms across the capital hum early in the morning and well into the afternoon, filled with students chasing better results. Whether this new rhythm produces stronger minds—or simply tired ones—is a question the next national exam will begin to answer.
