Invigilators, supervisors to undergo briefing as all set for national exams
From left: Knec chairman Prof George Magoha, Education CS Fred Matiang’i and Principal Secretary Belio Kipsang briefing the media on exam preparedness. PHOTO| FILE | NATION MEDIA GROUP
What you need to know:
On Wednesday, field officers who will be tasked with monitoring the examination were briefed by the Kenya National Examinations Council (Knec) in Nairobi.
Principals and headteachers have also been briefed on what is expected of them as centre managers.
There will be 28,566 examination centres for KCPE and 9,350 for KCSE.
Supervisors and invigilators for this year’s national examinations are set to be briefed on the exercise starting Tuesday, setting the stage for the examination that is one week away.
Some 5,916 officers have been recruited for the Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) exam while 21,828 examiners are listed for the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) examination.
They will be administering the examination under tough rules that were introduced this year and which state that any officer found guilty of encouraging irregularities will be liable to a fine of Sh5 million or a five-year jail term.
They are also required to collect relevant information and evidence, which could be used in a court of law or the National Examinations Appeals Tribunal in case they encounter suspected cases of irregularities.
BRIEFED
On Wednesday, field officers who will be tasked with monitoring the examination were briefed by the Kenya National Examinations Council (Knec) in Nairobi.
The officers were from Teachers Service Commission, private schools, teachers’ unions, associations and National Parents Association and Ministry of Education, among others.
Principals and headteachers have also been briefed on what is expected of them as centre managers.
Deputy county commissioners and sub-county directors of education who will have keys to containers where the examination materials will be stored were trained two weeks ago.
KCSE PRACTICALS
KCSE practicals will start on October 23 and will run until November 2 with theory papers starting on November 6 and ending on November 29. The practical examinations are; French (oral and Braille), German (oral), Arabic (oral), Kenya Sign Language (practical skills), Music practical, building and construction and home science.
KCPE will start on October 31 after rehearsals on October 30 and end on November 2.
Some 1,003,556 candidates registered for KCPE while 615,773 registered to sit the KCSE exam.
There will be 28,566 examination centres for KCPE and 9,350 for KCSE.
A total of 6,037 KCPE and 7,001 KCSE private candidates were registered for 2017.
PRIVATE CANDIDATES
This year private candidates will sit both the theory and practical examinations in a public school identified by the Sub-County Directors of Education.
Kenya Secondary School Heads Association (Kessha) chairman Kahi Indimuli said they are ready for the examination since they have been acquainted with the new regulations that spell out tough penalties for those who condone cheating.
“Principals are ready and we are focused on administering the exams within the new rules,” Mr Indimuli told the Sunday Nation.
However, he raised concerns over rising political temperatures, saying this may affect candidates.
SPECIAL NEEDS
Special Schools Heads Association of Kenya chairman Arthur Injenga said schools are ready for the exercise and asked teachers to ensure that they follow the laid-down rules.
Some 2,071 candidates with special needs will sit KCPE and 1,404 candidates will sit KCSE.
Knec has since assessed the needs of these candidates to ensure that suitable and adequate assistance will be provided to them during the administration of the examinations.
The exams will be held on October 26 and the Home Science 441/3 paper, which was set to be done on that particular day, has since been moved to October 30.
This is because a number of schools are gazetted as polling stations and tallying centres for the October 26 elections.
ENVIRONMENT
All primary schools will close for the Christmas holidays on October 25. Students in Form One, Two and Three will close for the Christmas holidays on October 24.
“I expect that schools will provide a good environment for KCPE and KCSE candidates to sit their examinations in line with the timetables provided,” said Education Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i during a briefing to deputy county commissioners and sub-county directors of education.
The officers will be deployed to manage the 419 examination containers in the country.
“I urge all of you to discharge your duties as diligently as you did in the 2016 national examinations. This team will be critical in ensuring that there is high integrity of the national examinations in terms of security and overall administration,” said Dr Matiang’i.
TOUGH GUIDELINES
At the same time, failure by supervisors to adhere to examination timetable among others will cost them their jobs.
Knec, in tough guidelines to those who will be involved in management of examinations, also states that supervisors will be required to explain in writing over failure to adhere to the timetable.
Those monitoring the examination will also be required to contact call centres and inform them accordingly.
And, in cases where candidates are found with unauthorised materials, supervisors will be required to record the accurate details of the candidate.
The supervisors will also be required to alert the command centre. Invigilators will also not be allowed to move out of the examination room during the examination.
In cases of impersonation, the guidelines state that the candidate should not be stopped before the end of the examination.
