Implementation now only topic of CBC debate; let’s address the issues

In his Madaraka Day speech this year, President Uhuru Kenyatta stated: “Given the manifest successes achieved in this short period of time, there is no turning back with respect to the Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC).” That shifts our focus from the debate about whether CBC should be abolished or not to its implementation.

There are challenges at the implementation stage, however, that must first be addressed for that to be a success. First, the Task Force on Enhancing Access, Relevance, Transition, Equity and Quality for Effective Curriculum Reforms Implementation made recommendations on how to implement CBC. But the Ministry of Education is yet to reveal how many of the ideas were accepted, rejected or amended and at what level of authority in government the decisions were made.

Consequently, contradictory statements have been made on CBC implementation, as was the case between the government spokesman, Col Cyrus Oguna, and Education Cabinet Secretary, Prof George Magoha, a fortnight ago on whether Junior Secondary School (JSS) students will be taught in day or boarding schools or both.

Secondly, according to a story by David Muchungu (Saturday Nation, May 28), “there is an exodus of students from the CBC system to schools that offer international syllabus, mainly the British school system, in order to cushion their children from teething problems of the new system’’. This is a sign of disaffection on the CBC implementation.

Thirdly, some statistics being released by the ministry do not add up. For example, there are 1.3 million students in Grade Six who are due to join JSS in January. At an estimated enrollment of 50 students per class, 26,000 new classrooms are required, but the ministry says only 6,000 had been constructed by April. Would the remaining 20,000 classrooms be budgeted for and constructed within the remaining six months? Furthermore, in most cases, one classroom has been constructed in schools that have as many as five streams. That is tokenism.

Fourthly, the ministry says it has identified 1,500 primary schools to host JSS students. If every one of the schools will take an average of three streams, then 225,000 students will be catered for. But that raises some issues.

Criteria of selecting students

One is where to relocate the primary school pupils who had been using the classrooms. Two, primary schools do not have laboratories. Does it, therefore, mean that the 225,000 students will, right from admission, have to abandon science subjects?

Three, what will be the criteria of selecting students to join these schools as opposed to those who will join the existing secondary schools?

If the proximity of the school is a consideration, what will happen to parental or child preference as has traditionally been the case? Are we likely to sacrifice mixing children from diverse communities for lack of space in far-flung schools? Will national and extra-county schools admit students from the locality of the school? What will be the criteria of students accessing the better-endowed schools in the absence of an examination that has traditionally been used to select students? How will all these variables be taken care of using a computer placement process?

The ministry will have to urgently take the necessary steps to retain the confidence of the parents and students in CBC. First, there has to be a clear policy direction on implementing the curriculum. Secondly, there has to be a rapid response to matters that may arise during implementation to avoid misinterpretation by stakeholders. Thirdly, the infrastructural challenge is massive. Lack of funding at this stage will derail the process.

Lastly, could the ministry consider separating the curriculum of CBC and its structure? Did we have to overhaul the structure while changing the curriculum? Was it not possible to change the name of the system and the curriculum to “CBC”, as well as the pedagogy to suit it, but retain the structure as 8-4-4? If that were done, the financial challenges attendant to the change of structure would dissipate. That is similar to the way we have upgraded so many middle-level colleges to universities without changing the structure.

Mr Sogomo, an education expert, is a former Secretary of TSC. [email protected]. @BSogomo