Mobile Labs to Tackle Junior High School Facility Crisis
To address the ongoing crisis in junior secondary schools, the School Equipment Production Unit (Sepu) has developed a Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC) lab equipment that can be used in secondary schools.
The CBC lab equipment is a white wooden mobile laboratory with a set of drawers and cabinets on its sides, and a black acid-proof sink in the middle that drains into a small plastic tank at the bottom.
The mobile lab is also equipped with a 13kg gas cylinder, a power socket, and an illumination lamp for lighting. It can use both electricity and solar power and has four lockable caster wheels for student safety during practicals.
Sepu has developed five categories of science kits, including primary science kits for Grades Four to Six, integrated science kits for junior secondary (Grades Seven to Nine), Chemistry and Biology kits for senior schools.
Each mobile lab costs Sh200,000, and schools need around eight of them, totalling Sh1.6 million for one school.
According to Sepu CEO Joel Mabonga, mobile laboratories provide fast turnaround and complete, accurate, geochemical or assay data needed to effectively run and optimise operations.
The mobile lab has the ability to carry out experiments for subjects in junior secondary schools and will be used by learners in Grades Seven, Eight and Nine.
Mr Mabonga added that the CBC kits provide low-cost, local, and essential alternatives as teaching and learning resources. They allow many schools to acquire standardised kits for effective teaching and learning of science subjects.
The use of learning resources such as CBC kits will enhance the development of science subjects and practical skills. Sepu has further developed user guidelines/manuals for effective use of the kits by teachers and learners.
According to Sepu corporate communication officer Sepu Ronny Katamo, over 50 schools across the country, both public and private, have already received the mobile labs.
However, the national government has not yet made a deal with Sepu, so schools are paying the company directly before they deliver the mobile labs.
Mobile Labs to Tackle Junior High School Facility Crisis
