Kathiani MP Robert Mbui has raised concerns over a subject taught in schools offering the Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC), stating that there is no teacher in Kenya who is qualified and with the expertise to tutor learners on the unit.
Speaking on Monday during a morning talk show, Mbui claimed that the subject in question, Visual Arts, Performing Arts, Sports and Physical Health Education (P.H.E), is a combination of five former subjects, which have since been collapsed into one.
The lawmaker further questioned the criteria used to arrive at the decision to package the subject as is currently being touted since it comprises different and unique elements.
The MP noted that the visual arts aspect requires a teacher to cover art and design which is different from performing arts which entails music and drama.
Further, he elaborated that the sports and physical health education aspect, also part of the subject, is a different discipline altogether.
Mbui noted that “ There is no professional teacher in Kenya or even Africa that can teach those subjects, in fact not 4 even 2 of them”
Additionally, he further criticised the curriculum stating that it was hurriedly cobbled up together and the government was obligated to correct the matter.
The MP also raised a concern about the Junior Secondary School (JSS) students' next step questioning which schools they would join after completing Grade 9.
While poking holes into the CBC system, Mbui questioned if the government had built classrooms for the Grade 9 students or if they would be required to join high schools which were part of the 8-4-4 system.
However, the MP noted that he had raised the CBC issue in Parliament before the recess break, but it was not addressed exhaustively .
The CBC system has been scrutinised widely since its inception, with various stakeholders questioning its implementation.
In the past few months, there has been a tussle between the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) and JSS teachers with the tutors threatening to strike if not hired on pensionable terms.
On the other hand, last week clerics drawn from the Christian and Islamic religions raised questions about content in some CBC books noting that it was propagating the LGBTQ+ agenda.
