Kenya Secondary Schools Heads Association (KESSHA) has welcomed National Assembly's move to reverse the Ministry of Education's directive banning ranking of schools.
Association chairman John Awitti however wants the ministry to address the issues which pushed the government to abolish ranking.
MPs on Wednesday passed a motion to compel education Cabinet Secretary Prof Jacob Kaimenyi to reintroduce ranking of schools based on their performance in national examinations.
The motion moved by Kiminini legislator Chris Wamalwa received a massive backing by MPs who said ranking promoted competition and that it was a way of appreciating performers.
Prof Kaimenyi is still however convinced that ranking has no merit in the current education setting, a position he held when he appeared before the Senate Committee on Education moments after MPs disapproved abolition of ranking.
Task force reports on the country's education system have repeatedly linked ranking to the cheating cases in the national examinations, hence recommending its removal.
Addressing the media during the ongoing Kitui County Kessha meeting in Kisumu, Awiti said Kenya National Examinations Council (Knec) must put its house in order to avoid cheating in the national examinations.
"It must be known how the examinations leak from Knec to schools before they are administered. It may turn out that the people we are ranking are not the right people that should be there," said Awiti.
He said it is the examination council which should seal the loopholes to which examinations leak to schools before they are administered.
The chairman has also proposed that schools at various levels are ranked separately so as to be fair to all the learners.
According to Awiti, the selection of candidates joining form one has been bias with national schools taking the top cream while county and sub-county schools given second and third priorities.
"National schools must be ranked separately from the county schools. If those factors are addressed then there is no need of doing away with ranking but if not then it will not serving any purpose."
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