Upstarts floor academic giants in KCSE

NAIROBI: Upcoming schools posted good results while academic giants recorded a drop in last year’s Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) exams.

In Kisumu County, some of the big names that have faded from the limelight are Ahero Girls, Achego Girls, St Barnabas Girls, Nyakach Girls and Koru Girls.

Nyakach posted a mean score of 8.2 points, Ahero 7.2, Achego 8.4 and Koru 8.5.

However, Kisumu County Education Director Sylvestre Mulambe defended the schools’ performance saying they will send a big number of students to university.

“From the face of it the schools appear not to have performed as expected but when you analyse the results you will realise a good number of students were above the average mark for university entry,” he said, adding that stakeholders will however sit down and scrutinise each of the school’s results.

In Migori County, little known Kadika Girls topped with a mean score of 8.9, an improvement of 1.06 compared to 2014.

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Eight students scored A-, 94 (B+), 23 (B ), 12 (C+), 18 (C), 7 (C-), 1 (D-). The school beat former academic giants like Moi Nyabohanze in Kuria which had a mean score of 8.4, Nyabisawa Girls and Dede Girls.

Nyabisawa had Germany paper cancelled while Dede in Awendo Sub-County posted a mean score of 5.7 with the best student scoring B plain compared to 2014 when the mean score was 5.575 with the highest students scoring B +.

Sponsor interference

Moi Nyabohanze’s deputy head teacher Linnet Akinyi Singei said performance has been improving gradually in the last four years.

The teacher said the school’s mean score of 7.2 was an improvement from 6.6 in 2014, 5.3 in 2013 and 5.1 in 2012.

Kisii County again topped in irregularities in Nyanza region with former academic giants performing dismally.

Upcoming schools like St Charles Lwanga Ichuni Girls, Amasago Secondary and Nduru Girls beat Riokindo High and Sengera Girls.

Nduru Girls and Inchuni had a mean of 9.1 and 9.9 respectively while other schools like Kereri Girls, 8.1, Nyamwagwa Boys 7.9 and Sameta Boys 8.5. Retired education officer Zachary Mokua blamed poor management and sponsor interference for decline in schools’ performance.

“It is unfortunate that a school head cannot be posted to a specific institution without the sponsor’s blessings. People are looking at region and not competency. The government should find a way of dealing with this menace,” said Mr Mokua.

A total of 294 students in 17 exam centres in Kisii County didn’t receive their results due to irregularities.

In Nyamira County, Rangenyo Girls, St Theresa’s Gekano Girls, Manga Girls, and Kebabe registered improvement in performance in the KCSE results that were released on Thursday by Education Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i.

Kebabe recorded a remarkable improvement in the mean score to post 6.2, compared to 5.89 in 2014.

The principal Eunice Nyambane blamed the results on low Form One entry numbers a factor also cited by the other head teachers. At Rangenyo, where the top candidate scored a B minus, the top entry mark they admitted this year was 300 with the lowest being 200.

“We invited 90 candidates in total to join the school but we received only 16,” said Ms Ntabo.

The school has 11 TSC teachers who are sufficient for the student population of around 120 students.
On one of the school blocks, a large but fading print of an expected mean of 7.5 for 2015 is still visible. But it seems a pipe dream that never came true.

This year, they achieved a mean score of 5.7, up from 5.56 of 2014.

Manga followed closely with a minimal improvement of about 0.8 after recording 5.07 from 4.2 the previous year.

Siaya County Director of Education Nereah Olick said KCSE results of all candidates of Sega Girls Secondary School were cancelled for
cheating in Biology.

“All the candidates of Sega Girls got a Y in biology, hence they did not get their results,” she said.

Miwani Boys High School was also affected after nine students had results for Computer studies cancelled.