Knut trashes literacy report

The Kenya National Union of Teachers has criticised a report by Uwezo on literacy and numeracy in East Africa.

The union says the report on the quality of academic competencies of East African pupils for the last three years lacks authentication and purpose.

Union Secretary General Wilson Sossion said stakeholders in the education sector were not involved in the study hence its authenticity is questionable.

“We have the survey documents and we are studying them. I basically cannot comprehend the entire document as we have never been alerted or involved in it,” Sossion said.

In the latest survey launched on Tuesday, the findings stated that 20 per cent of pupils enrolled in Standard Seven do not have Standard Two-level literacy and numeracy competencies.

The study was carried out in 2012 and is meant to help improve the quality of education.Even though the study placed Kenyan pupils ahead of their counterparts from Uganda and Tanzania in both numerical and literacy competencies, Kenyan pupils dominated the top and the bottom of the list with East Pokot District rated bottom at 7.2 per cent.

The study also shows Kenya grabbed the top ten districts ratings out of the total 362 districts evaluated in the entire East Africa region.