Dreaded second term returns to haunt schools

A dormitory in Dr Aggrey National School in Taita Taveta County on fire. [Renson Mwanyamwezi, Standard] 

The death of 16 girls in a dormitory fire at Utumishi Girls Senior School in Gilgil has once again thrust the country’s troubled second term into the spotlight.

The fatal incident comes after weeks of school unrest, dormitory fires and student strikes reported in different parts of the country, reviving fears over a pattern that has repeatedly haunted schools during the longest and most demanding term of the school calendar.