CBC pupils hold anti-drug use awareness campaign

Jabstir School pupils marching on Kakamega town streets on their way to Lurambi to create awareness on environmental and drug abuse. [Benjamin Sakwa, Standard]

At the start of the national rollout of the new curriculum, scenes of pupils slashing tall grass, collecting garbage and conducting general cleaning in marketplaces were common.

Some of the children wore sack clothes or carton boxes, as aprons while others put on paper shoes for protective gumboots.

In other instances, learners were seen carrying handmade bags for litter bins or garbage holders as they went around the cleaning exercises.

Even though the scenes were shocking, these were part of the suggested learning experiences that all children undertaking the Competency Based Curriculum (CBC) in public and private schools were expected to undergo.

Several years later, even though the activities drew varied reactions from Kenyans, many schools took the exercises seriously and are now reaping the benefits.

Last week, excited Grade Four and Grade Five learners from schools in Kakamega marched along Kakamega - Webuye highway with a band and traffic police escort.

It was not your ordinary procession; the learners were taking the classroom outside through an awareness campaign.

They had placards that read: "Say no to drugs and child abuse, keep the environment clean and save our trees."

"We are here to put into practice what we learn in class," said a Grade Four pupil from Jabstir Academy in Kakamega town.