Crisis looms in junior secondary as more students join Grade 9.
The more than 23,000 junior secondary schools are facing an impending crisis as a result of an expected sharp rise in enrollment.
This is probably going to result in severe gridlock, a lack of tutors, and overcrowded facilities when the pioneer class moves up to Grade 9 in January.
In interviews, a number of school heads paint a dismal image of what they call a nightmare brought on by a shortage of resources, such as laboratories and classrooms, as well as teachers to cover extra classes.
According to the school administrators, the establishments will welcome both Grade 9 students and a fresh group of Grade One youngsters transferring from pre-primary education.
In order to guarantee a seamless transfer, Johnson Nzioka, chairman of the Kenya Primary Schools Heads Association (Kepsha), issued a warning.
Nzioka stated on Friday, “We run the risk of encountering the same pressure secondary schools faced following the 100% transition; the schools were in a precarious condition with some forced to host students in dining halls due to lack of facilities.”
With just six months left, stakeholders anticipate a race against time in the preparations for the 16,000 classrooms the Education Ministry has stated it will build to help with the changeover.
Ezekiel Machogu, the secretary of the Education Cabinet, stated on Thursday that Grade 9 classrooms will be completed by December.
According to the CS, the first phase of classroom construction began this month and will result in the construction of some 3,500 classrooms.
By the end of the year, we should have completed between 16,000 and 18,000 classrooms, according to Machogu. “The first batch of the classrooms will be complete in four months, and we are starting another batch in about two months.”
He made his remarks at the fourth National Education Sector Strategic Plan’s launch, which will serve as the sector’s five-year roadmap.
According to Machogu, the government has allotted Sh3.5 billion for the building of the classrooms.
“We have disbursed Sh3.5 billion, and we intend to disburse additional funds to our 290 constituencies in the forthcoming fiscal year (2024/2025),” stated Machogu.
However, others have questioned the government’s assurance.
A head teacher questioned the government’s plan’s feasibility, as reported by the Standard.
What will happen to a school with six or seven Grade 8 streams if only one class is taught there? “Where are the other students going to go?” he asked.
Chairman of the National Parents Association (NPA), Silas Obuhatsa, stated that a 12,500 classroom shortfall is imminent because just 3,500 classrooms are anticipated to be finished in the next four months.
“Is it feasible for the government to build 15,000 classrooms by the end of the year?” questioned Obuhatsa.
A shift of the junior secondary final grade to secondary schools was proposed by several stakeholders, but it was rejected by the Ministry of Education in April.
This implies that when they move to Grade 9 the following year, the pioneer class of the Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC) will stay in their existing institutions.
Belio Kipsang, the principal secretary for basic education, dispelled worries that junior schools are not ready to receive students in Grade 9.
Uncertainty around the teacher shortage exacerbates the transition. TSC has stated that it plans to hire about 20,000 additional intern instructors. However, the idea is in jeopardy because a legal dispute about the hiring of interns on a contract basis is still underway.
The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) was found in violation of the law in April by the Employment and Labour Relations Court for hiring recent graduates who held valid teaching licenses as interns.
“If this is upheld, it will imply that TSC will not be able to hire the interns in July as scheduled,” Collins Oyuu, secretary general of the Kenya National Union of Teachers, said.
The absence of appropriate direction about the Grade 9 laboratory and workshop plan is another point of contention. While the School Equipment Production Unit has given certain schools mobile labs, the majority of the institutions are still unsure of their current situation.
Textbooks and curriculum guidelines are also essential for the shift. The head of the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development, Charles Ong’ondo, stated that the Grade 9 textbooks are presently undergoing review before to release.
Crisis looms in junior secondary as more students join Grade 9.
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