What you need to know about CBC pathways

Education CS Dr Julius Ogamba accompanied by PS Prof Julius Bitok during the releasing of 2025 KCSE results at AIC Chebisas Boys in Eldoret Uasin Gishu Country on December 9, 2026. [Peter Ochieng, Standard]

I was almost scandalised recently when I visited a senior school and sat through a session meant to ‘sensitise’ parents on senior secondary school pathways under the Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC). What I heard was not guidance. No. It was misdirection. A teacher, speaking with the confidence of authority, presented the pathways as rigid corridors leading to a few predetermined careers. Parents listened anxiously. Learners sat quietly, absorbing fear.

Around the same time, I wrote a brief social media post on my Facebook page, outlining a few basic facts about CBC pathways. It was nothing elaborate, just clarifications grounded in policy and practice. The response was overwhelming. Messages poured in from parents and teachers, with many expressing relief, others confessing confusion, and some admitting outright fear about the choices their children were being pushed to make. That reaction made one thing clear: there is a serious information gap. This article attempts to explain, calmly and fully, the philosophy behind Senior School pathways.