Education CS George Magoha, has reiterated that the national examination calendar will not be altered in order to enable students to make up for the time lost during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Speaking at Afya House on Sunday, April 19, in a press briefing, the cabinet secretary encouraged students to continue learning online and make use of technology to gain more knowledge.
''Up to this moment, nobody has thought about postponing the national exams both KSCE and KCPE. We are following the president's directive and there is a committee of six cabinet secretaries that will look into the post-corona period in an in-depth manner from next week,'' said Magoha when asked about the state of national exams.
Parents and various education stakeholders had called for the postponement of the two examinations arguing that children from disadvantaged areas would get a raw deal if the exams went on as planned.
However, Magoha urged them to be positive about everything, ''We shall tell you the various scenarios we have come up with and not all of them involve a doomsday situation, and since we are very optimistic, I still refuse to be guided by the fearmongers.''
Magoha defended his tough stand arguing that mobile network coverage in the country was extensive to enable things to run smoothly and education to go on.
"To the best of governments knowledge, the children are getting online learning as stated last week, since the penetration of mobile phone technology is far and wide in this nation so those with smartphones can let their children access information from the KICD website,'' stated Magoha.
As the government plays hardball on use of technology in children's studies, children from less privileged area will stand to lose as they still lack basic necessities such as electricity and internet to enable them access learning materials.
However, parents still have a ray of hope in regards to the well being of their children as Magoha added that he is still waiting for a presidential directive in regards to the examinations.
Parents have also been encouraged to stay home with their kids and continue aiding them in their studies since they can use tv sets and radios for learning purposes.
Watch CS Magoha's statement below:
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