Centre managers collect KCSE examination papers at the Kisumu Central Deputy County Commissioner’s offices in Kisumu on November 8, 2023.
With just two weeks left until the start of the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) examinations, uncertainty surrounds its administration after the Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers (Kuppet) reiterated their demand for higher allowances for teachers involved in the exercise.
The union initially made the demand in September through a letter to the Cabinet Secretary for Education, Julius Ogamba, but the government has not responded to the demands.
“There’s been no response from the government and we feel they’re joking. They’ve not called us to discuss the allowances, but have only called teachers for briefing,” said Kuppet secretary-general Akello Misori.
The union has proposed a new rate of Sh3,000 per day for invigilators, up from Sh400 per day and supervisors to be paid 3,500 per day from the Sh450 they are paid currently and Sh4,500 for principals, who also act as examination centre managers during the examination period. Currently, the principals are paid Sh500 per day.
“It’s unfair to have a multi-agency approach during the examinations but teachers are paid peanuts. Examinations are a sensitive matter that can lead to jail terms if one makes a mistake. We’re not asking for too much. We’ll respond in a big way and the two weeks remaining are enough. We’re not limited to a boycott; we’ll do more,” said Mr Misori without divulging more details.
The demand for better remuneration of teachers deployed during the examination period was one of the grievances of Kuppet when it called for a strike in August before agreeing a consent with the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) that ended the strike. However, the matter remains unresolved.
The CEO of the Kenya National Examinations Council (Knec) told Nation that the council increased the rates for supervisors, examiners, and marking centres last year. Mr Ogamba had not responded to our inquiries by the time of going to press.
Knec has in recent years struggled with budgetary constraints to pay examination officials since the government stopped it from charging fees for school examinations.
However, its allocation by the National Treasury has been inadequate since it is a block allocation as opposed to a capitation per candidate, despite the numbers increasing every year.
The inadequate allocation has led to delays in paying teachers who participate in the examinations exercise. The TSC acts as an agent of Knec during the period. In the current budget, the council was allocated Sh5 billion.
The council has announced new guidelines for the examinations aimed at improving efficiency and maintaining integrity. The KCSE theory papers will be administered from October 28 to November 22, 2024.
KCSE question papers for each candidate will be personalised with their photo and index number. The council has registered 965,501 candidates across 10,755 centres, an increase from the 903,260 candidates registered in 2023.
Knec has also introduced a rotation system for the KCSE supervisors where each supervisor will serve at an examination centre for only one week before being reassigned to another centre. The strategy is designed to minimise familiarity with the centres and further enhance examination security.
