I will personally monitor exams, Matiang’i pledges

Education Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i will set aside all his ministerial duties in November to go around the country and monitor how the national examinations will be conducted.

Dr Matiang’i, known for his impromptu visits to schools, which have put many headteachers on the spot, on Friday said his November 4 to 30 diary had been cleared to ensure he visits schools countrywide.

“I will be at the exam centres myself, working with the supervisors. Principal Secretaries and directors from the ministry, and I will work together to ensure we deliver credible results this time,” he said.

“All of us, including myself, will be on duty from November 7 to 30, supervising exams,” he told students, parents and teachers at the Kenya High School in Nairobi during the annual speech and prize giving day.

He said there were many other measures the ministry has in the pipeline to stem examination cheating. He added that they include the use of technology.

He brushed off critics of the new measures he announced on Wednesday, saying wide consultations had taken place.

At the same time, teachers have raised concern over the decision to extend the second term by a week, saying this will affect those pursuing further studies at tertiary institutions.

Kenya National Union of Teachers Secretary-General Wilson Sossion said a number of teachers were pursuing studies under school-based arrangements.