Government officials and key players in the education sector agreed on a new curriculum that will replace the 8-4-4 system.
Here are some of the highlights about the new system that will be implemented in four months time:
1. The Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) and Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) exams will be replaced by Kenya Assessment Learners Achievement (KALE) and Kenya Certificate of Basic Education (KCBE) at both primary and secondary school levels.
2. More emphasis will be placed on continuous assessment tests as opposed to final exams.
3. The system will be competency-based and will give more emphasis on identification of talents and nurture them.
4. Learners will now take two years in pre-primary, six years in primary school, three in junior secondary, three in senior secondary and three at the university. (2-6-3-3-3 system)
5. The main focus will be to equip learners with skills rather than having them cram and reproduce facts in line with vision 2030.
However, during the meeting at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC), key education stakeholders raised concerns about the new system.
The Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) Secretary General, Wilson Sossion claimed that the government was rushing the whole process and that teachers needed to be trained on the system.
“We need to develop learning materials, the syllabus and train teachers before actual piloting of the new curriculum. Looking at the time we have, can we really do this in three months?” Mr Sossion posed.
Other stakeholders alleged that the system would be too expensive and that a lot of resources would be required to implement it yet no funds had been allocated in the budget.
Education Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i brushed off the criticism stating: "We should make it better and avoid negative views."