A 49-member working party appointed by President William Ruto on September 30, finally kicked off its nationwide tour visiting 10 counties on the first day.
The Raphael Munavu committee collected reviews on the Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC) from teachers, parents and different education stakeholders.
Parents were at the forefront of calling for CBC reforms over matters they deemed arbitrary.
Others strongly advocated for a complete overhaul of the CBC and a comeback of the 8-4-4 system.
Cost
Top of the list was the expensive nature of CBC. Most criticised the system for being too expensive and having hidden costs.
“The first time I went to a cyber cafe and completed an assigned task that cost me almost Ksh300. I thought I was done, but there was more.
"A few days later, my child came home with more instructions that required we print more pictures,” A Grade five parent in Mwatate, Taita Taveta County lamented.
"We want to ask the government to give adequate funding to CBC programmes. It is good, and it makes children participate practically in learning," a stakeholder in Turkana added.
Several parents opined that if the government considered CBC the best curriculum, it should shoulder the costs and cater for all requirements.
Learner Safety
Proposals from several counties prescribed that junior secondary schools be domiciled in primary schools based on the argument of the age and maturity of learners.
The Vice-Chair of the Nyandarua Chapter of the Kenya Secondary School Heads Association, Peter Maina, highlighted molestation in schools, noting that young learners were vulnerable to physical and psychological torture.
"We are too young for secondary and we prefer remaining in primary school until we mature, " a Grade Six pupil stated.
Lack of Infrastructural Facilities
Stakeholders in Taita Taveta County differed, with some arguing that the curriculum was fair but had been made unfriendly by inadequate infrastructure, such as laboratories.
“Crowding in common facilities will worsen, further adding on to our primary schools which have underutilised facilities. Our teachers are already overwhelmed because they are few,” he stated.
Many called on the task force to shelve the new curriculum until proper structures were established.
The Ministry of Education, under the previous regime, had already started construction of new classrooms in various schools around the country to accommodate the curriculum.
Inadequate Teacher-Learning Resources
Parents recommended the responsibility of buying books and paying school fees as the government endeavours to provide all CBC materials that teachers need.
"The issue of funding, training and preparation are some of the main issues we need to highlight while addressing CBC concerns," Busia Governor Paul Otuoma pointed out.
Teacher Competency
Teachers in attendance faulted the implementation of the curriculum, citing that the curriculum did not adequately prepare them.
“Most parents have raised concern about CBC and called for its scrapping. However, I believe this has emerged because teachers were not prepared adequately,” David, a retired teacher, noted.
Upon compilation of all recommendations and findings, the task force will forward the report to the President.
