CBC Taskforce Chair Munavu Addresses Extra Fees Charged by Teachers
Raphael Munavu, in charge of the Presidential Working Group on Education, has finally said something about parents’ complaints that the Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC) is too expensive.
In an October 30 interview with Sunday Live, Professor Munavu acknowledged that implementing the curriculum was too expensive for parents to bear.
However, he requested that the parents provide cost-effective ideas to help the state implement the new curriculum.
“Parents play a major role in raising children. The key tenets of CBC of community engagement and parent engagement in teaching cannot be conveyed just by teachers. Parents have a role but we must clearly define the role. It should not be too costly for the parents.
“Sometimes there are things that we must re-engineer. If we have a way of engaging the parents… please come on board and tell us what your view is,” stated Munavu.
The professor also said that the task team that President William set up to evaluate the CBC rollout had started a tour of the whole country to hear what Kenyans think before recommending a plan of action.
“We are going to visit all the counties because we must listen and get views on what Kenyans feel and say not about CBC only but also about TVET and university education,” he added.
The campaign will conclude on November 12, and all stakeholder responses will be collected by November 18. Beginning in December, the final report will be delivered to the Head of State upon completion.
Parents have previously complained that teachers took advantage of the CBC rollout to make unreasonable requests of them each school year.
In other instances, kids have been instructed to transport live chickens, while others have been instructed to dress as chefs or police officers, placing a financial burden on their parents.
Munavu also addressed the difficult topic of university funding during the interview, indicating that the issue would be addressed in the forthcoming report.
Several universities, led by the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT), owe billions of shillings to its suppliers.
“Who is responsible to ensure that the University is fully funded? It is all Kenyans because we are training future workers. People who are going to drive this country. It is appropriate for us to revisit how the universities should be funded.
