Teachers back call to review KCPE exam

By FREDRICK OBURA

The Kenya Primary School Head Teachers Association (Kepsha) has called for wider consultation on whether the Kenya Certificate of Primary Education exam should be scrapped.

Parliament is about to begin debate on the scrapping of the national examination.

Led by the national chairman, Joseph Karuga, the head teachers said brainstorming session is necessary and would help in coming up with an alternative to examining students at the primary level.

"As association, we welcome the move by parliamentarians to discuss better ways of examining our students at the primary level, but we don’t want to come up with another problem," said Karuga

He noted that the current system was punitive and condemned many students at a tender age.

"As teachers we demand for inclusion in the debate. We want to brainstorm with our leaders to help come with a successful system, we are the direct beneficiaries and we know what we want," he said.

"We don’t want Members of Parliament to hijack the whole process since this may lead to a bigger mess than the one we currently have," he said.

Speaking in Nairobi, the Kenya Primary School Head teachers Association Vice-Chairman Shem Ndolo welcomed the debate to discuss alternatives to the Kenya Certificate of Primary Education examinations.

"The current examination system at the primary level is discriminative, as it eliminates our students at an early stage. We need time to nurture the students to identify their areas of strength," he said on Friday.

Ndaragwa MP Jeremiah Kioni has given notice of a motion that calls for the scrapping of KCPE.

Fundamental right

In the notice, Kioni says all pupils who sit primary school exams should be allowed a smooth transition to secondary schools.

"This House resolves that the Government abolishes the KCPE and provide for a continuous, uninterrupted education system from level one to Form Four in order to accord all Kenyan students universal basic education," reads the notice.

The MP argues that education is a fundamental human right, which each child is entitled to.

"Quality basic education better equips girls and boys with the knowledge and skills necessary to adopt healthy lifestyles," he says.

He said educated people were more likely to have fewer children and to adopt better practices in bringing up their children.