Education Newsbyte
The latest Education News Today
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###Junior Secondary School learners (Grade 7 to 9) to take 12 compulsory subjects out of the14 – KICD Says
Learners joining Junior secondary schools (at grade 7) will be taking 14 subjects out of which 12 subjects will be compulsory. This is according to latest curriculum design by the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD).
According to KICD, the 14 subjects include English, Kiswahili, mathematics, integrated science, health education, pre-technical and pre-career, social studies, religious education, business studies, agriculture, life skills education, physical education/sports, and foreign languages.
The 12 core subjects which will be taught, include Mathematics, Kiswahili, English, Life Skills, Health Education, Social Studies, Integrated Science, Business Studies, Religious Education, Agriculture and Sports & Physical Education.
Optional subjects provided to learners include at least one and utmost two subjects from the following subjects: Visual Arts, Performing Arts, Home Science, Computer Science, Foreign Languages-German, French, Mandarin, Arabic, Kenya Sign Language and Indigenous Languages.
According to KICD, Pre-technical and pre-career studies is a subject that helps the learner prepare for technical and engineering studies, and career and technology studies.
“This will equip the learner with foundational knowledge, that is a prerequisite to specialise in subjects such as metalwork, woodwork, electricity, aviation technology, building construction, power mechanics, leatherwork, culinary arts, hairdressing and beauty therapy, marine and fisheries, manufacturing and media technology at senior school,” the curriculum design reads.
Lessons to take 40 minutes
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###Officer suspended from overseeing exam for stealing
Disciplinary action will be taken against an Administration Police officer allegedly caught on camera stealing from invigilators.
The officer reportedly stole Sh1,300 from three teachers invigilating the ongoing Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) exam at Kimulot Boys High School in Konoin, Kericho County.
County police commander Mathew Mangira said the officer has been suspended from manning the exam centre with immediate effect.
After reporting the matter to the school principal, CCTV footage was retrieved and it showed the officer entering the room and ransacking bags belonging to three teachers.
Mangira said the three teachers lost Sh100, Sh300 and Sh900, respectively. The school reported the matter at Kimulot police station.
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###State to connect more homes to electricity after securing funds:
Kenya Power will connect over 280,000 homes under the Last Mile Connectivity to be funded by the French Development Agency.
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###You get a scholarship for attending Jamhuri Day fete, PS Tanui says
You will get a free scholarship if you attend Jamhuri Day celebrations, Principal Secretary of ICT and Digital Economy, John Tanui says.
PS Tanui, a member of the National Celebrations Committee, made the sentiments during the preparations for Monday’s public celebrations at Nyayo Stadium.
In a statement, Tanui says the scholarships will be on technology certification courses, and will be awarded to eligible adults who will attend the event in person.
According to Tanui’s statement, the scholarships will be offered in various universities partnering with the National Government.
Arizona State University and the Thunderbird School of Global Management are some of the institutions in the programme.
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###Faith Wandia: Student who birthed idea of converting grass into flour
A 24-year-old student of Kabarak University has found a way of converting grass into flour as Kenya seeks to address a widespread hunger crisis.
Faith Wandia, a Master of Finance Degree student, says she was motivated to innovate after coming across social media videos of starving children.
The 24-year-old student said her trick, was to come up with a way of converting cellulose available in grass into starch. Enzymatic transformation studies had to be done to know how to make the conversion possible.
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###Rift Valley, Nairobi had highest number of rape, defilement cases last year:
Kenya recorded a total of 10,442 sex-related and gender-based violence cases in the year 2021/2022.
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###Teachers’ union opposes ministry’s move to ban boarding primary schools
The Kenya Union of Special Needs Education Teachers (KUSNET) through its Secretary General Mr James Torome said the PS’s move was ill-advised.
PS Belio announced that parents should look for day schools for their children in Grade One to Grade nine come January 2023.
But Mr Torome said boarding schools have been providing a haven to girls escaping retrogressive cultural practices such as FGM and early pregnancies.
“Banning boarding schools will mean that girls who escaped from FGM will now be at the risk of being subjected to the vice and married off,” said the unionist.
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###Machakos University closed indefinitely over unrest:
Varsity says the decision has been taken in the interest of the security of staff and learners.
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###School in trouble after barring students from KCSE exams over pregnancy, fee arrears
The learners from Matewa Day Secondary School in Tigania Central were reportedly sent away on exam day for various reasons including fee arrears and pregnancy.
One candidate who was pregnant reported being denied access to the exam room.
Another parent, Ms Penina Karimi, said her son was sent home over fees arrears.
“I have been struggling to pay fees for my son. He has not been in school due to health issues and lack of fees. The teacher said he cannot sit for his exams because he has been absent. We were told that the DCC has issued orders that students who are absent cannot sit their exams,” she said.
Two other parents, Mr Amedeo Kimathi and Mr Patrick Kaugiria, also said their children were sent away from school over school fees balances.
“My child was sent home in September but I could not raise the school fees. My daughter became pregnant while at home. She was denied access to the exam room because I owe the school Sh10,000,” Mr Kaugiria said.
Other parents have alleged that the school was not keen on having candidates who have not been in class in recent months as it feared they may negatively affect the institution’s performance in this year’s KCSE.
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###Knut backs boarding primary schools ban
“The idea being propelled in the education sector is to make education affordable. Boarding schools are expensive … ,” said Mr Oyuu.
He urged the state to be accommodative of the existing schools so that there is no wastage of resources and parents are not affected.
In an interview with the Nation, Dr Kipsang explained the move will make education affordable, saying that on average national and extra county schools charge Sh53,000 and Sh45,000 on average in annual fees.
However, he said public primary boarding schools make up less than 5 per cent of all schools. In arid and semi-arid areas, he said, the government will maintain boarding schools.
“When their parents go out to look for pasture, we want to make sure the children are in school. We are encouraging all our junior secondary schools to be an environment that allows children to be close and bond with their parents. For the existing boarding facilities, the communities and the state will agree on the way forward,” he said.
The chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Education, Mr Julius Melly, said: “Many parents have left their responsibilities to teachers, in fact, they wish that all their children to be in boarding schools. Many of us don’t know our children. Let all the schools be day schools.” He said parents will now be able to guide and counsel their children.
The Kepsha national chairman Johnson Nzioka said: “Why should we have a 10-year-old going to a boarding school? We need that bond established between the parent and child. ”
~Newsbyte.
