Media-based instructional innovations: opportunities, practices and challenges at Hossana College of Teacher Education

The frequently used phrase ‘the medium is the message’ in teacher education refers to both successful teacher preparation and the creation of a common language for teaching. For the purpose of analyzing opportunities, practices and challenges related to media-based instructional innovations at Hossana College of Teacher Education, 42 teacher educators using availability sampling and 278 third-year pre-service teachers (145 linear and 133 specialists) using stratified random sampling were selected. We used five-point Likert-type items, open-ended questions and unstructured interviews. In addition to the descriptive analysis, the Mann–Whitney test and Pearson correlation methods were used. The findings demonstrated that, except a few concerns rose by college administrators, there are not enough opportunities and then there are persisting challenges related with the relevant stakeholders for the practice of media-based instructional innovations. Suggestions for the college to create and execute a better organized system of instructional media were also provided.