By Rawlings Otieno

The Kenya National Examination Council (Knec) has rescheduled the national exams to recover lost time occasioned by the teachers’ strike.

Candidates sitting the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) will commence their exams on October 15 and Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) begins in December 4.

Education minister Mutula Kilonzo said after the three-week-long teachers’ industrial action, the time left for students to prepare for the exams was not adequate.

The decision was arrived at after Mutula met with Knec secretary Paul Wasanga and agreed to push the examination dates by three weeks.

Mutual said he had already signed the gazette notice effecting the changes to be forwarded to Attorney General Githu Muigai for onward presentation to the Government Press.

“As minister I have issued a gazette notice redeeming the old examination dates and gazetting the new dates,” said Mutula.

According to the new examination dates, KCSE practical exams will now commence on October 25 instead of the earlier date of October 4.

Theoretical exams will be taken between November 12 and December 11, this year, while the marking, processing and release of the 2012 KCSE examinations will subsequently be undertaken between December 13 and April 16 next year.

For the first time in many years, the results of the Form Four exams will be released in April, away from the traditional end of February every year.

This means that the university calendar will also be revised to accommodate the changes occasioned by the strike.

And as a result, both primary and secondary schools will close on November 23 instead of the earlier calendar that had indicated that children go for the long recess on November 2, this year.

Even the KCPE was not spared in the latest examinations change of dates.

The Standard Eight exams that were planned to commence on November 4 and end on November 6 have now been rescheduled to be done on December 13, 14 and 15.

Subsequently, marking and processing of the KCPE examinations will be conducted between December 7 and January 25 next year when the results will be released.

In view of the changed 2012 KCPE and KCSE examinations, the new school term dates for next year have also been pushed by three weeks.

Pupils and students will open the new academic year on Monday, February 4 and end on Friday, May 17, next year, while the second term will begin on Monday, June 3 and close on Friday, September 6.

Mutula has also written to remind his Finance counterpart Njeru Githae to release funds for the capitation of the Free Primary Education (FPE) and the Free Day Secondary schools (FDSE) and grants to Knec for the management of the 2012 KCPE and KCSE exams.

Githae is set to release Sh3.9 billion for the FDSE and Sh300 million grant for Knec to prepare the exams.

“Without this money, it will be so difficult for Knec to adequately manage the exams. This money should be released immediately,” added Mutula.

The FPE will also get a major boost if Githae injects another Sh1.7 billion for the smooth operation as schools resume today.

“It is my hope that the Treasury will act urgently to avoid any challenges associated with learning in third term as well as the smooth running of the 2012 exams for both primary and secondary in order to protect the children rights,” Mutula appealed.

However, the Education boss reiterated that the forthcoming General Election would interfere with the running of the school calendar, arguing that the learning of the children will be disrupted.

He said he wanted elections to be held in December but the Constitutional Court gave an advisory opinion that the elections be conducted in March next year, just one month after the schools open.