Sossion Opposes Move to Have Students Repeat Classes

Former nominated Member of parliament Wilson Sossion.
Former Nominated Member of Parliament, Wilson Sossion
File

Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) Secretary-General Wilson Sossion on Wednesday, July 15 opposed plans to have students repeat classes.

Sossion noted that having students repeat classes will lead to psychological torture and proposed that students pick up the syllabus from where they left off.

"It would be practically wrong to think that you can promote a form three class that had covered mathematics work for one and half months of that year to form four and you want them to cover form four work in one year and also cover 75% work of form three.

Students during a lesson at Kibra Primary School.
Students during a lesson at Kibra Primary School. Dr Stella Bosire studied at the school before she was expelled in Class Five.
File

"You will create a problem, psychological torture and things that will not work, let us not experiment and when people are putting forward a theory that has not been tested and they call it a professional observation that is fundamentally wrong and therefore we begin from where we stopped and we will move," he explained.

Sossion noted that should classes resume in the month of January 2021 exams would be conducted in July or August and the academic year ending around the same time.

He proposed that a new academic year should begin in the month of September 2021 after a short break following the completion of the syllabus. 

The KNUT Secretary-General's comments received some backlash as a number of people noted that he was part of the Education Stakeholders and should have floated his idea in the proposal.

Students across the country have struggled to continue learning from home after the closure of schools back in March as a majority lack access to e-learning.

Ministry of Education Cabinet Secretary Professor George Magoha on Tuesday, July 7 revealed that the 2020 academic calendar year was lost hence students would repeat classes.

Plans to reopen schools on September 1, 2020, were also suspended due to a spike in Covid-19 cases with basic learning institutions set to be reopened in January 2021.

The government also issued a raft of measure ahead of the planned reopening including testing of teachers two weeks before resumption of classes.

CS Education Prof George Magoha while releasing 2019 KCPE results at Mitihani House in Nairobi on Monday November 18, 2019
CS Education Prof George Magoha while releasing 2019 KCPE results at Mitihani House in Nairobi on Monday November 18, 2019
Simon Kiragu
Kenyans.co.ke