How poor grades saw the birth of top-performing school in Baringo

Mogotio Little Friends Academy top pupil Patience Jepkurui with her mother Evelyn Kityenye. [File, Standard]

From being an Early Childhood Development Education (ECDE) centre, Mogotio Little Friends Academy has grown to become one of the academic giants in the Central Rift region.

The school, located in Baringo County, was one of the top-performing schools in the region in the just-released 2021 Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) examinations.

The results released by Education Cabinet Secretary Prof George Magoha on Monday revealed that out of the 96 candidates, who sat the exams, 44 scored 400 marks and above.

The top performer scored 424 marks to emerge as one of the top candidates in the region. The school recorded a mean score of 397.

But, how did the little know school that was started as an ECDE centre on May 3, 2005, with five learners and two teachers shoot into the national limelight?

Mr David Kigen, the school’s Director, is nostalgic about the school’s humble beginnings.

He recalls that poor performance by his eldest child was the reason behind the establishment of a nursery school with the aim to ensure children in the region have a good foundation in their early education. “The number of learners increased to 40 in the third term. In 2006, those who were in ECDE transitioned to primary in the same school,” he recalled.

Today, the school has more than 1,000 pupils. Mr Kigen said he never had a dream of ever owning a school. “I never had that dream of owning a school. I took my children to a nearby school and realised they were not performing. My first and second-born, who were then studying in a nearby school were not performing well and pushed me to start mine,” he said.

The school director attributed the good performance to the corporation among the stakeholders. He said that though Covid-19 affected learning, the pupils did their best.
Kigen said his plan is to make the school an academic giant in the country in the coming years. 

Business
Premium Ruto's food security hopes facing storm amid fake fertiliser scam
Business
Premium Nairobi business community plans protest as over 700 containers held at port
Real Estate
Premium Affordable housing: Will State's data-backed action now pay off?
Real Estate
Premium Building to the skies, but at what cost?