Last year’s giants edged out of the list of top performers

In a dramatic shift from the previous KCPE exam, only two schools with the top 10 students in 2015 achieved a similar feat this year.

While the Education ministry did not rank schools, new ones have taken command of the lead positions.

In 2015, St Joseph’s School in Kakamega County had the best student in the country with 449 marks.

This year, none of its students was among the top 10.

Similarly, in 2015, Nairobi’s St Mary’s Ruaraka shared the number two slot after two of its students scored a spectacular 446 marks.

It shared the slot with Embu County’s PCEA Kathigiri.

This year, St Mary’s Ruaraka was out of the top 10, although PCEA Kathigiri still produced a stellar performance, with two of its students scoring 428 and 425 marks.

On the positive side, Kakamega County once again produced the country’s best student, after Daisy Special School’s Oduor Victor Odhiambo scored 437 marks.

In 2015, none of its candidates was among the top 100.

Gilgil Hills Academy in Nakuru also dropped from the schools with top 10 students.

Its best candidate, Linda Nyakundi, scored 426 marks compared with its newcomer rival St Peter’s Elite, whose best candidate had 432 marks.

From Mombasa, St Kevin Hill Nyali has also lost its top position and none of its students features at the top.

In 2015, the school produced the fourth-best student in Kenya, scoring 444 marks.

Another disappearance from the ranks is that of Nairobi’s Good Hope Academy, which had the fifth best student but has vanished from the top 10.

In 2015, Makueni’s Premese Academy produced the country’s sixth-best student, but this year it does not feature among the top 10.

But some schools, such as Nairobi’s Tender Care Junior Academy, maintained their top 10 lead, with Tender Care's best student, Kevin Ngatia, scoring 436 marks, compared with 440 marks its student Osman Ali got in 2015.

Another disappearance is that of Moi Educational Centre, which produced two students last year with 441 marks. This year, it is a no-show

This year's results were released by Education Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i without parastatal choirs, imposing marquees and outside catering units, in a departure from the fanfare of yesteryears.