There’s no going back on new curriculum, says CS Magoha

Education CS George Magoha engages teachers during a training on the competency based curriculum at Lake Primary School in Kisumu County yesterday. [Collins Oduor, Standard]

All teachers will undergo training on the Competency Based Curriculum (CBC) by August this year, Education Cabinet Secretary George Magoha has said.

He dismissed those opposed to the new curriculum, saying there was no looking back on its implementation.

Speaking at Lake Primary School in Kisumu, Prof Magoha, who visited 21 schools during the training, said an ICT hub will be unveiled in the next two weeks to improve access to materials by teachers.

“Four days have been enough for us to achieve what we set out to realise; the exercise has been a 100 per cent success despite the few challenges which we dealt with promptly. The hiccups witnessed have been lessons for us as we move to train the next cohort,” he said.

No room for negotiation

He asked skeptics to propose ideas that can help strengthen the curriculum’s implementation, instead of criticising it. He said with the training of teachers, there was no room for negotiations on the new system.

“We can now say the train has left the station and there is no turning back,” said Magoha.

He said the Sessional Paper on Reforming Education and Training Sector was already in Parliament and would by June anchor the change of education system in law.

He criticised the Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut) for opposing the training of teachers “yet it rooted for the CBC training”.

Magoha thanked teachers for responding to the government’s call. “We must all join hands and ensure we deliver what is good for our country and children. We have an honest group of professions in our teaching fraternity. All we need to do is empower our teachers if indeed we expect to get excellent results. They have the passion to deliver,” he said.

The CS dismissed claims that pupils would be required to sit national exams at Grade Three to advance, saying such reports were misplaced.

“CBC is an assessment, not an examination,” he said.

About 91,000 teachers underwent the training between Tuesday and yesterday. A team of 181 master trainers trained 1,165 regular and special needs education curriculum support officers and 1,320 ‘CBC champions’ as the trainers of trainers.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Education has received Sh1.5 billion for improvement of school infrastructure across the country.

Transition

The funds will be used to address infrastructural challenges particularly in secondary schools, following the 100 per cent transition policy that has left many schools grappling with congestion due to limited capacity.

Many schools have either converted their dining halls into dormitories or classrooms, with some having a classroom of more than 50 students, which is against the ministry’s policy.

Speaking at at Jogoo Primary School in Kisii on Thursday, Magoha said the money will be distributed fairly to schools that have the greatest need.

He said he will not sit in his office and wait for reports from his officers but will be visiting different parts of the country to understand the challenges facing education.

“I want to promise that under my leadership schools with infrastructural challenges will receive funds. I have demanded that I get a report on how such funds are used. We will not just allocate funds to schools, but will do that based on the need of every school,” said Magoha.

The CS also visited Rongo and Homa Bay where he spoke to teachers attending the curriculum training.