Primary schools to house junior secondary schools – Ruto
The government has directed that junior secondary schools (Grades 7, 8, and 9) will be domiciled in existing primary schools.
This is after the Presidential Working Party on Education Reform presented an interim report to President William Ruto on Thursday.
President Ruto was expected to announce the fate of the Grade 6 students currently taking their national examination.
In an announcement on Thursday, Ruto said the Grade 6 KPSEA exam will not be used for Junior Secondary School placement.
Instead, it will be used as an assessment to track learning progress and provide feedback to stakeholders in the education sector on areas that require intervention.
Learners in Grade 6 began their summative assessments this week to mark the end of the primary school cycle, but they were unsure whether they would stay in their current schools or transition to secondary schools in January. The Kenya Primary School Education Assessment has 1,287,597 students registered (KPSEA).
The government has also ordered that an additional classroom and laboratory be built in each primary school.
“The construction of laboratories will be given priority within the next one year. Members of Parliament are asked to work towards providing support for the extra facilities. Meanwhile, primary schools neighboring secondary schools will share the laboratories and other facilities with junior secondary schools,” reads a statement on the interim report of the Presidential Working Party on Education Reform.
According to the statement, the Ministry of Education, the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development, and the Teachers Service Commission will work on ways to expedite retooling teachers so that the country has a sufficient number of teachers who are CBC compliant.
Priority will be given to teachers who will be working with students in Grade 7.
“Government will recruit an additional 30,000 teachers by January 2023 to facilitate the transition and bridge the teacher shortage,” reads the statement in part.
The Presidential Working Party on Education Reform has until March 2023 to submit its final report.