Guidelines On JSS Placement Out This Week.
The Ministry of Education will issue a circular this week outlining clear guidelines for placing learners in junior secondary school (JSS) under the competency-based curriculum (CBC).
The circular is expected to guide parents, teachers, and education officials through the transition, which has left thousands of people in the dark.
The first cohort of CBC students is expected to begin secondary school in January of next year.
Last week, Education Cabinet Secretary George Magoha announced that the Kenya National Examinations Council (Knec) portal will be open for learners to select their preferred secondary schools from August 15 to 30.
This will be prior to their final evaluation, which will take place from November 28 to 30.
Knec began administering the school-based assessment on July 18 and will conclude on September 9, after which the scores will be uploaded to the learners’ portal by the head teachers.
Each of the three school-based assessments in Grades 4,5, and 6 contributes 20% of the total score. The remaining 40% will be added in the November assessment.
According to Knec data, the majority of learners in the candidate class scored between 10 and 13 out of 20 on the assessments they took in grades 4 and 5.
Given that the scores will be used for JSS placement, some stakeholders have expressed concerns about their objectivity. The CS, on the other hand, has dismissed such concerns.
“Knec has instituted all relevant measures to ensure credibility of school-based assessments. It is evident that the assessment scores submitted by schools for the school-based assessments are objective, with the scores revealing a normal distribution curve in 2020 and 2021,” Prof Magoha said.
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Most public secondary schools are currently overcrowded, and the double intake of the Grade 7 CBC class alongside Form One under 8-4-4 will only exacerbate the situation.
The double intake will admit 2,512,467 students to secondary schools, but only about 800,000 will graduate from Form Four in November.
This disparity is causing school administrators to lose sleep.
“Selection for admission of learners into JSS will be premised on the principles of merit (performance in KPSEA); equity (affirmative action where required); choice of schools by learners on advice by parents and teachers; and institutional declared capacity,” Prof Magoha said.
Guidelines On JSS Placement Out This Week
