Investors To Build Separate Junior High Schools
Private investors will build standalone junior secondary schools to accommodate students ahead of the January rollout, which could significantly alter the structure of the education sector.
Originally, junior high would be part of either secondary or primary schools.
“There are those private investors who are building standalone junior and we are encouraging them to do so. There is one in Mombasa,” Education Cabinet Secretary George Magoha said.
The ministry is collaborating with private schools and other stakeholders to ensure adequate infrastructure for the 1.2 million students who will graduate from Grade Six in December and begin Grade Seven in January.
The Competency Based Curriculum (CBC) will be implemented in secondary schools beginning next year.
Prof Magoha stated that the government has already finished building 11,000 classrooms in phase one.
This month, the CS began construction on over 3,500 classrooms for phase two.
According to the CS, the ministry is also counting on space in primary schools that share a compound with secondary schools, as well as private primary and secondary schools.
Prof Magoha announced yesterday in Busia that primary schools in the northeastern region will also host junior secondary schools.
According to the CS, the government anticipates 5,000 classrooms in private schools and 5,000 in public schools.
According to a task force report, junior high should be held in secondary schools, with the majority of students attending day secondary schools.
Day schools account for nearly 70% of secondary education institutions. The task force report predicted a shortage of over 20,000 secondary school classrooms.
In terms of infrastructure development, the Ministry of Education is also relying on the World Bank-sponsored Secondary Education Quality Improvement Programme, which is constructing classrooms and laboratories in selected schools. The program began in 2017 and is expected to cost Sh8.2 billion over six years.
It is intended to benefit educationally and economically disadvantaged schools.
The projects are aimed at 7,852 public elementary schools and 2,147 public secondary schools.
The schools were chosen because of their high poverty rates, low retention rates, and low transition rates to secondary institutions.
The government is also taking steps to ensure that Grade Seven textbooks are available by January.
The government provides books to students at a 1:1 ratio.
The Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development is working with publishers to have textbooks for Grade Seven students ready by January.
Grades seven, eight, and nine will be taught at the junior secondary school.
Students will study 12 core subjects and select a minimum of one and a maximum of two optional subjects from a pool of seven.
Students will go through a rigorous career guidance program in senior secondary school to enable them to choose subjects that align with their career paths of interest.
Secondary schools have received curriculum designs for the Grade Seven books.
In November, the government intends to begin distributing textbooks.
Private educational institutions
Before the junior secondary rollout, the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) is training 116,024 secondary school teachers from both public and private schools.
TSC is also in the process of transferring P1 teachers with degree credentials from primary to secondary schools, with over 1,000 teachers already moved.
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According to Sunday Nation, more primary school teachers are being transferred to secondary schools.
Meanwhile, Prof Magoha has appointed Mr Cyrus Gituai to the position of Chairperson of the Kenya Universities and Colleges Central Placement Service for a three-year term. He will succeed Mr. Joe Ager, whose term has expired.
Investors To Build Separate Junior High Schools
