Teachers want school choices revised

Secondary school heads want this year’s Standard Eight candidates to make high school choices afresh.

The creation of 30 new national secondary schools, they said, had rendered the selection by the Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) candidates null and void.

Kenya Secondary School Heads Association chairman Cleophas Tirop said the pupils had based their selection on the old 18 national schools.

“Our candidates have already selected their schools and they will be disadvantaged unless they revise their choices,” he said.

The candidates selected their preferred national, provincial and district schools last term before the government increased the national schools to 48.

It means the 30 new national schools were considered provincial schools so most of the candidates who picked them are from the local region.

Under the quota system, up to 95 per cent of Form One students join schools in their home provinces.

“A fresh selection would open the door for candidates from all parts of the country to express their interest in joining the new national schools,” Mr Tirop said on Tuesday.

The headteachers’ union chairman also called for the abolishment of a quota rule introduced last year.

The rule allocates 3,000 places in national secondary schools to candidates from public primary schools, while candidates from private schools are allocated 1,200.

“The system was suitable when the number of national schools was small,” Mr Tirop said.

He also called on the Education ministry to introduce a new classification of schools to abolish the current categorisation as provincial or district, saying the grouping should be based on counties.

Provinces have been done away with under the new Constitution.

“The current system based on districts should be replaced with one that allows candidates to be considered for all schools in the local county,” he said.

At the same time, the association called for speeding up of the equipping of the new national schools so that they are ready to take in this year’s KCPE candidates.

While announcing the elevation on Monday, Education permanent secretary James ole Kiyiapi said each of the affected schools would receive Sh25 million for the upgrade.

The funds will be used to expand classrooms, dormitories and laboratories.

In total, Sh700 million has been set aside for the programme.

Prof Kiyiapi said the new schools would provide 3,240 new places in national schools for boys and 2,670 for girls.