High Turn Out In Public Junior Secondary as Grade 7 Learners Report To School
The Cabinet Secretary for Education Ezekiel Machogu emphasized that all children in Junior secondary will be reporting to schools in line with the government’s 100% transition initiative.
The government is determined to achieve 100% transition both from grade six to JSS and from class eight to form one.
Mr. Machora assured that they will work with all relevant stakeholders in education, security, and the community at large to achieve this agenda.
It is a significant milestone for these students as they embark on the next phase of their education journey and it is important for parents and guardians to support them every step of the way.
The Kisumu Central Sub-county Director of Education, Charles Angiela, has reported that 29 public schools and 41 private schools in the area have been cleared to host Junior Secondary Schools.
A total of 4,888 students in the Sub-county are expected to transition to Junior Secondary, with 70% already reporting.
In Kiambu showed that most parents have followed the directive and taken their children to school. According to Kiambu Township Primary School Head Teacher, Rahab Wanjie, the school has 266 students in Junior secondary which is about 80% of the admitted students.
However, the number of students per class is a little larger than the government’s directive of 48 students per class, which could make it impossible for the school to accommodate students from other schools.
Some parents from schools that do not have classes for junior secondary are concerned as they do not know where to take their children as nearby schools already have enough students.
The turnout in Kirinyaga Central is quite positive, particularly in public schools.
However, private schools have reported relatively low numbers of students so far. Mr. Kennedy Machora, the Kirinyaga Central Director of Education, spoke at Kerugoya Municipality Primary School while assessing the admission of students.
He reported that the turnout in public schools is around 90% while that in private schools is slightly over 40%.
Kirinyaga Central Sub-county has a total of 1,697 slots, with public schools having 821 vacancies and private schools having 876 positions.
Mr. Machora stated that a total of over 2,300 students sat the assessment exams, with 1,774 students from public schools and 624 students from private schools.
Homa Bay County has seen a significant increase in the number of learners enrolling in grade 7.
According to Joseph Ouma Obunga, the head-teacher of Homa Bay Primary School, many parents from remote areas within the county have brought their children for admission with the belief that there will be boarding facilities available.
Mr. Obunga also mentioned that there will be changes in the uniform, where boys will wear trousers instead of shorts, which is currently worn by pupils in lower classes.
Murang’a County Director of Education, Ms. Ann Kiilu, has announced that the 657 schools in the county which will host Junior Secondary are now fully prepared for the transition from primary to secondary education.
Out of the 657 schools approved for Junior Secondary, 514 are public schools and 133 are private schools. They are all equipped and ready to host the students starting from Monday.
On Monday, schools in Nakuru were bustling with activity as thousands of students reported for their first day of Junior Secondary School (JSS).
County Director of Education, Mr. Fredrick Osewe, stated that 1200 primary schools in the area have been approved to host JSS and that 171 private institutions have been advised to take their learners to the nearest approved school. He also mentioned that neighboring schools will be required to share facilities, such as labs, to facilitate the teaching of practical subjects like science, agriculture, and computer science.
A total of 59,795 learners from the area, 50,425 from public schools and 9,370 from private institutions, sat for their final assessment from November 25th to November 30th of last year.
The transition from primary to secondary education will impact over 1.25 million learners who sat the Kenya Primary School Education Assessment (KEPSEA).
The learners who sat the Grade Six KEPSEA Assessment have all reported to their respective schools for Junior Secondary, with only a few expected to report later in the week.
On Monday, the Education Cabinet Secretary monitored the reporting of grade seven learners at Nairobi Primary School and announced that text books will be issued to students at a cost of Sh3.164 billion for each of the core learning areas and optional subjects.
The national government has directed that JSS be housed in primary schools, following a recommendation by the Presidential Working Party on Education Reform.
The learners in public Junior Secondary Schools will each receive a capitation of Sh.15,000 from the government.
The Ministry of Education will also develop and implement a framework for sharing and management of infrastructure and human resources among JSS and other institutions.
The guidelines for JSS detail the facilities to be shared, such as pitches and open spaces for athletics, a computer science lab, counseling rooms, a library, and a home science room.
Learners will be assessed through a national summative assessment administered by the Kenya National Examination Council (KNEC) at the end of Grade 9 in all 12 core subjects and a maximum of two optional subjects.
At the Pre-Vocational level, learners will be assessed in nine subjects.
Both formative and summative assessments will be conducted, with the formative assessment offered in the form of school-based assessments and the summative assessment taking the form of national assessment.
High Turn Out In Public Junior Secondary as Grade 7 Learners Report To School
