Private school owners now make junior high pledge
Kenya Private Schools Association Chairman Charles Ochome (left) who has said that private schools have resolved to build more junior secondary schools.
Owners of private schools have resolved to build more junior secondary schools (JSS) following a reassurance from the government they will be considered in allocation of students transitioning from Grade Six in primary school.
Kenya Private Schools Association (KPSA) chairman Charles Ochome said additional schools will cater for all learners transiting to JSS under the Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC). Kenya has 10,000 private schools but only 4,000 are members of the association.
Speaking at the end of a three-day annual conference in Mombasa, Mr Ochome said the government had assured them that Grade Seven learners will also be placed in their institutions.
“Education Cabinet Secretary Prof George Magoha and other ministry officials took us through the requirements and we are very happy with the progress,” said Mr Ochome, while assuring the government that the proprietors will build and equip more schools to help achieve its five million classroom target.
The government will, in the next three weeks, outline the guidelines for the placement of 1.28 million learners who will be transiting to JSS next year.
20,000 classrooms required
A total of 20,000 classrooms are required but the government has so far built 6,494 in the first phase of the infrastructure upgrade project. The second phase starts next week.
On Tuesday, Prof Magoha said private education stakeholders should ensure there are stand-alone schools for the pupils who will transition in January.
“We had said JSS shall be hosted in secondary schools, but we have walked back on that because of the circumstances in the private sector. We are telling private sector primary schools that you can create stand-alone junior high schools. It’s a win-win situation,” said the CS.
For the public sector, however, Prof Magoha said JSS will be hosted in secondary schools “because we don’t have money to hire extra teachers.” Speaking to the 1,000 eKPSA members meeting in Mombasa, the CS assured private schools of the government’s support in the roll out of CBC in junior high.
No capitation for private schools
Capitation, however, will not be extended to pupils and students in private schools, he said, after the private school stakeholders urged the government to ensure learners from private schools get capitation.
Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD) Chief Executive Charles Ong’ondo urged the proprietors of private learning institutions to be conversant with CBC.
Prof Ong’ondo said the 21st-century skills, which are the competencies the CBC is promoting, include communication and collaboration, creativity and imagination, critical thinking and problem solving, citizenship, learning to learn, digital literacy and self-efficacy.
