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Belay Sitotaw Goshu
Department of Physics, Dire Dawa University, Dire Dawa, Ethiopia

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Journal : Matondang Journal

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Misconceptions in Physics among High School Teachers: A Case Study in Dire Dawa City, Ethiopia Belay Sitotaw Goshu; Melaku Masresha Woldeamanueal; Muhammad Ridwan
Matondang Journal Vol 4 No 1 (2025): Màtondàng Journal
Publisher : Britain International for Academic Research (BIAR) Publisher

Show Abstract | Download Original | Original Source | Check in Google Scholar | DOI: 10.33258/matondang.v4i1.1120

Abstract

Ensuring high-quality education depends heavily on teacher competency. Diagnostic exams can assess teachers' topic knowledge and identify areas where they need to improve their preparation. Nonetheless, gender and education level-based performance gaps underscore the need for a more thorough comprehension of these variables in the Ethiopian educational setting. The purpose was to assess teachers' performance on a diagnostic exam given by standards established by the Ethiopian Ministry of Education and investigate performance differences by gender and educational attainment. Existing studies on teacher competency in Ethiopia have rarely explored the influence of demographic variables, leaving a critical gap in understanding how gender and education level impact performance. Methodology: A cross-sectional analysis was conducted using diagnostic test scores of teachers. The relationships between education level, gender, and performance were assessed using statistical techniques such as correlation analysis, t-tests, and chi-square testing. Teachers with an MSc outperformed those with a BSc, with average scores of 75 and 62, respectively. Female teachers passing rate was (62.1%) and the male teachers (68.9%), but the chi-square test indicated no statistically significant association between gender and performance (χ² = 0.05, p = 0.824). Significant disparities in diagnostic test performance highlight gaps in teacher preparedness. Tailored training programs, equitable resource allocation, and gender-sensitive strategies are recommended to improve teacher performance and bridge identified gaps.
The Cosmic Descent of Falling Angles: Ethiopian Orthodox Teachings, Astronomical Insights, and Philosophical Reflections Belay Sitotaw Goshu; Muhammad Ridwan
Matondang Journal Vol 4 No 1 (2025): Màtondàng Journal
Publisher : Britain International for Academic Research (BIAR) Publisher

Show Abstract | Download Original | Original Source | Check in Google Scholar | DOI: 10.33258/matondang.v4i1.1249

Abstract

Religion, astronomy, and philosophy are just a few fields of human thought that have understood falling as a physical phenomenon and a symbolic idea. In the Ethiopian Orthodox tradition, falling is often viewed as a moral and spiritual descent, particularly in the narrative of the Book of Enoch, where the fall of angels represents disobedience and the corruption of humanity. Astronomically, falling is understood as the entry of meteors or meteorites into Earth’s atmosphere, governed by the laws of physics. Philosophically, falling is explored as a metaphor for existential struggles, with thinkers such as Plato, Sartre, and Nietzsche associating it with ignorance, despair, and the search for meaning. The objective is to examine the similarities and differences between the philosophical, astronomical, and theological perspectives on falling. The research adopts a qualitative methodology involving a thematic analysis of religious texts, scientific literature, and philosophical works. The findings reveal that while religious perspectives focus on the moral and spiritual aspects of falling, astronomical explanations offer a scientific understanding based on physical laws, and philosophical views use falling as a metaphor for human existential challenges. The study concludes a varied consideration of falling by providing insights from multiple intellectual traditions. The study recommends fostering interdisciplinary research to explore these views further, integrating spiritual and scientific perspectives, and promoting public education that bridges religious and scientific interpretations.
The Heavens Declare: A Journey through the Seven Skies of Scripture and Science Belay Sitotaw Goshu; Muhammad Ridwan
Matondang Journal Vol 5 No 2 (2026): Màtondàng Journal
Publisher : Britain International for Academic Research (BIAR) Publisher

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Abstract

The notion of the seven heavens (ሰባቱ ሰማያት; al-samāwāt al-sabʿ), articulated in Ethiopian Orthodox, biblical, and Islamic traditions, has often been dismissed as prescientific cosmology incompatible with contemporary astrophysics. Such critiques, however, overlook the theological depth and symbolic intentionality embedded within these cosmological visions. Rather than functioning as empirical blueprints of the universe, the seven heavens operate as structured metaphysical frameworks that articulate transcendence, divine sovereignty, and graded ontological reality. This study contends that the seven heavens should be interpreted as a theological architecture rather than a failed scientific hypothesis. Through comparative textual analysis of the Ethiopian Book of Enoch, Pauline references to the “third heaven,” and Qur’anic descriptions of layered heavens, the research demonstrates that each tradition employs vertical cosmology to express divine proximity, moral hierarchy, and spiritual ascent. A hermeneutical engagement with atmospheric science, astronomy, and cosmology further reveals structural correspondences between ancient symbolic stratification and the layered organization of the observable universe, including atmospheric divisions, galactic hierarchies, and large-scale cosmic structures. To conceptualize this relationship, the study introduces the term cognitive resonance, distinguishing meaningful structural parallelism from simplistic concordism. The findings indicate that ancient cosmologies and modern scientific models share analogous patterns of order and scale without implying literal equivalence. Consequently, the heavens function as theological symbols within scripture and as physical realities within science, representing complementary epistemic domains.
The Eighth Day and the 49 Year Cycle: Unlocking the Mystery of Numbers in the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church Belay Sitotaw Goshu; Muhammad Ridwan
Matondang Journal Vol 5 No 2 (2026): Màtondàng Journal
Publisher : Britain International for Academic Research (BIAR) Publisher

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Abstract

The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church (EOTC) preserves a rich but largely unstudied tradition of numerical symbolism. This article provides the first systematic analysis of two interconnected numbers at the heart of that tradition: the Eighth Day (number 8) as a symbol of resurrection and new creation, and the 49‑Year Cycle as a framework for sacred time rooted in biblical Jubilee theology. Drawing on patristic sources preserved in Ge’ez, liturgical texts (including anaphoras and the Mawas‘et), the canonical Book of Jubilees, and the distinctive Ge’ez numeral system, the article argues that these two numbers together reveal a coherent theological system – a cruciform temporality in which the 49‑year cycle provides the horizontal structure for sacred time while the Eighth Day introduces the vertical irruption of eternity. This synthesis shapes Ethiopian Orthodox worship, baptismal practice, calendar computation, and eschatological hope. The article also surveys other sacred numbers (3, 7, 12, 13, 40, 318, 777), identifies critical research gaps (lack of primary source engagement, under‑exploration of Ge’ez gematria, conflation of official and popular practice), and proposes an interdisciplinary research agenda. The Ethiopian Orthodox numerical tradition offers a distinctive and underexplored contribution to global Christian theology, deserving of further philological, archaeological, comparative, ethnographic, and computational study.
Co-Authors Arifulhak Aceh Bikila Merga Deresa Duol Dak Maluel Kassahun Desealegn Asfaw Melaku Masresha Woldeamanueal Muhammad Ridwan Muhammad Ridwan Nigussie Mamushet Degeif Ramlan Solomon Zerihun