Form One placement results for Kenya Certificate of Primary Education candidates will be released next week, Education Cabinet George Magoha has announced.
Prof Magoha said over 1.2 million candidates who sat 2021 KCPE will get to know the secondary schools they have been placed on April 11 or April 12.
"I want to check the results personally just to be sure that no one has corrupted the results and that we have protected the weakest link," said Magoha.
He was speaking at Kenya High School in Nairobi where he commissioned a Competence-Based Curriculum (CBC) classroom for junior secondary students.
Magoha reassured parents that all children who sat the KCPE examinations will have an equal chance to access national schools based on performance, choices and affirmative action.
According to the CS, Form One selection will strictly be done on merit where affirmative action will be applied to ensure all national schools have a national outlook.
He said no child will be disadvantaged in the placement process and insisted that not all candidates who scored over 400 marks will get placement in national schools.
Magoha explained that the selection criteria also favour candidates who sat the exam under disadvantaged conditions and scored high marks.
“I would like to see a girl who did an exam in Mararal in Samburu County and who scored highly to join Kenya High School and another from Kiandutu slums in Thika or Kibera slums to join national schools. That is the brief I have from the president," said Magoha.
He said affirmative will be applied firmly.
“We shall place the best of the best in national schools but we shall apply affirmative action to ensure these schools represent the Kenyan fabric. A child who scores 399 in a harsh environment is capable of doing better if they get equal opportunities as one in Nairobi," said Magoha.
The CS dismissed critics opposed to the selection formula.
He also said that some 9,000 government-sponsored Elimu Scholarships will benefit top scorers who lack capacities to join secondary schools.
“Out of the 9,000 slots, 4,000 will cater for disadvantaged children in urban slums and others will be fairly distributed across all the sub-counties. We want to ensure we get the most deserving students for the scholarships," he added.
The CS noted that the programme will benefit children from poor families who in the past have been elbowed aside and their vacancies sold out to rich families.
"We will be very fair in this exercise and you'll hear a lot of noise from people who are used to those unfair placement schemes. I'm more attracted to that child from slums who has scored reasonably well and has no capacity to join a good school,” Magoha added.
The CS also announced that KCSE results will be released by the end of April.
“We must deliver credible exams that put all the students on an equal pedestal and anyone who dares mess with the integrity of examination will come under the full force of the law.
“Anybody who was found with evidence to aid in exam cheating shall be punished according to the Kenya National Examination Council’s laws. Students who were involved in exam cheating will also have a price to pay because nobody forced you to steal,” he warned.
Jmutura@standardmedia.co.ke
