Kabarak School tops KCSE exams as Rift Valley powerhouses continue to dominate

Traditional academic powerhouses in the Rift Valley region continued to excel in the 2023 Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) examinations with top results, despite a determined effort by public schools.

Moi High School - Kabarak emerged as the leading school in the region and nationally, boasting a mean score of 10.43.

The school had 401 students, with 62 of them securing straight As, 155 with A-, 102 with B+, 60 with B, another 18 with B-, and only 4 with C+.

The entire class of 2023 at the institution located in Nakuru County achieved the university entry grade.

In general, Moi High School – Kabarak, Kapsabet Boys High School, Moi Girls Eldoret, St. Patrick Iten, Nakuru Boys High School, Tenwek High School, Kabianga High School, and Baringo High School produced high-achieving candidates, not only within the region but also on a national scale.

In the North Rift region, Kapsabet Boys High in Nandi, Moi Girls High Eldoret in Uasin Gishu, and St Patrick High in Iten, Elgeyo Marakwet County, are among national schools that demonstrated exceptional academic performance in last year’s exam results, as announced by Education CS Ezekiel Machogu at Moi Girls High in Eldoret yesterday.

These schools reaffirmed their academic excellence by maintaining consistent exemplary performance. Kapsabet Boys achieved a remarkable 99 percent transition to the university, with 477 out of 480 registered candidates scoring mandatory grades of C+ and above.

Improvement

Kipchumba Maiyo, the Principal of Kapsabet Boys High, reported that the KCSE class of last year achieved a mean score of 10.2, representing an improvement from the previous year's 10.08.

The school produced 54 students with straight As, 147 with A-, 122 with B+, 91 with B, 42 with B-, 21 with C+, 2 with Cs, and 1 with a C-, solidifying its position as one of the top academic powerhouses in the country.

"Our culture has consistently emphasised performance because our candidates are aware of their goals from the outset. They adhere to high discipline standards and embrace the virtues of hard work," said Maiyo yesterday as celebrations resonated through the school located in Kapsabet town in Nandi – famously named 'The County of Champions.'

Before its official opening for the current academic calendar on Thursday, there was a buzz of activity at the school, with staff and community members gathering to celebrate its enduring tradition of achieving commendable results.

"We are delighted with the performance because we are part of the schools in the country that consistently produce quality results. This success is attributed to the collaborative efforts of the management, teachers, and students.

"Our school is highly sought after during form one admissions due to its sustained good performance," Maiyo said.

At St. Patrick's Iten, Peter Rotich, the Principal, expressed satisfaction with the performance of the institution's 373 candidates, who achieved a commendable score of 8.263.

“Following the resumption of the normal academic calendar last year after the COVID-19 disruption, our candidates had enough time for adequate coverage of the syllabus. They were well prepared for the examination,” said Rotich.

Rotich expressed confidence that the candidates would pursue competitive courses at the university, given their strong performance in the sciences.

"We had self-directed learners and good teamwork among teachers and the management. We are confident that our candidates will qualify for competitive courses since they excelled in the sciences," Rotich stated.

At St Joseph Chepterit Girls in Nandi county, teachers were still compiling results and had already achieved five straight As and 18 A-.

"We thank God for the good results achieved so far. Based on what we already have, our 359 candidates improved compared to the previous year," said Mrs. Francesca Chepkwony, the Chief Principal of St Joseph Chepterit Girls.

In West Pokot County, schools have achieved commendable results in the recently released Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) exams.

Notably, among the top-performing institutions are Chewoyet National School, The Kapenguria School, and Nasokol Girls.

At Chewoyet National School, the impressive results include one student obtaining an A plain, 24 with an A-, 56 with B+, 90 with a B plain, 75 with a B-, 50 with C+, 12 with a C plain, and 1 with C-.

Leading

The leading students at Chewoyet include Victor Kigen (A), Laurencia Lokabuk (A-), Joshua Ochieng (A-), Caleb Wafula (A-), Peter Wanjala (A-), Kipgosgei Braving (A-), Cyrille Kipkorir (A-), Victor Kimtai (A-), Jonathan Godfrey (A-), and Peter Odongo (A-).

Meanwhile, Kapenguria School, with 399 candidates, achieved a mean score of 7.84, equivalent to a B minus grade.

Noteworthy outcomes include 16 students with A plain, 49 with B+, 79 with B plain, 84 with B-, 80 with C+, 54 with C plain, 27 with C-, 8 with D plus, and 2 with D plain.

Chewoyet High School, boasting 311 candidates, achieved an outstanding 97 per cent transition rate to the university.

Deputy Principal Amos Kisige Okeng’a attributes their success to teamwork, expressing gratitude for the improved mean score of 8.7, a B plus, compared to the previous year's 8.3.

“We thank God for the better performance this year. Last year, we got a mean score of 8.3. It has been possible because of teamwork,” remarked Amos Kisige.

In the South Rift region, Nakuru Boys High School, a national school, posted 8.43500 with 298 candidates. It secured three As, 34 with A-, and 51 with B-. Additionally, 58 candidates scored Bs, 67 with B-, and 38 with C+. In the 2022 KCSE exams, the school had a mean score of 8.086.

Tenwek High School in Bomet county, among the traditional top-performing schools in the South Rift region, achieved an astounding mean score of 9.334 in the 2023 results.

At least 20 candidates scored straight As, another 10 scored A-, and 103 scored B+, while 102 managed a B. Fifty candidates who sat the exams scored B-. Out of 398 candidates who wrote the exams, 382 scored C+ and above, translating to 95.98 per cent.

Kabianga High School, situated in the Belgut constituency, reaffirmed its status as an academic giant. The provincial results showcased the school's excellence, with an impressive achievement of 20 candidates securing the coveted A (plain) grade.

Better results

Principal Ezekiel Kurgat said an additional 89 candidates achieved the A- (minus) grade, while 91 excelled with B+ scores, and 95 attained the grade of B. "The results are still streaming in. We believe that the entire results will be better than those of the previous year,” he said.

Meanwhile, in the Bureti constituency, Tengecha Girls High School emerged as a top performer in the county, boasting a mean score of 8.859.

The school's diverse achievements included one student securing an A grade, 19 achieving an A-, 56 achieving a B+, 102 attaining B, 56 scoring a B-, 30 achieving a C+, 5 with a C grade, and 1 with a C- grade.

Baringo High School, another national school, posted a mean score of 8.334 compared to the previous year when the school had 8.31.

The school, which had 296 learners registered, achieved seven straight A, 22 A-, 47 B+, 63 B, 60 B-, 59 C+, 23 C, 13 C-, and two D+.

At least 258 out of 296 candidates who sat the exams reached the university cut-off marks. 

The school Principal, Titus Ngetich, said that the rise was due to efforts put in place by teachers and learners. “I attribute the success to my teachers and students for making the school proud. We hope that the 2024 examination will be better than this,” he said.

At Anestar Group of Schools, three students scored an A while more than 20 scored an A-. The school had a candidate population of 312.

The top student David Kiiru said he sacrificed a lot to ensure he passed his examinations. 

[Report by Titus Too, Irissheel Shanzu, Caroline Chebet, Nikko Tanui, James Munyeki and Daniel Chege]