Junior Secondary School still in a mess but CS maintains all is well

Junior Secondary School still in a mess but CS maintains all is well

Junior Secondary School still in a mess but CS maintains all is well

Since its inception, Junior Secondary School (JSS) has faced numerous issues that have an impact on learning and have brought the Ministry of Education under scrutiny for its lack of response.It is becoming apparent that staffing shortfalls remain unaddressed, two weeks following learners’ reports. JSS is still marked by congestion and confusion, which hinders learning.A cursory visit to a few of the elementary schools hosting JSS revealed that they are still severely understaffed and finding it difficult to teach the curriculum. This raises concerns about the ministry’s commitment to the success of this new level of education.

Nancy Macharia, CEO of the Teachers Service Commission (TSC), acknowledged that JSS is experiencing a teacher shortage, with at least 99,045 teachers needed compared to the present 56,928.As the second JSS classes began last week and the first Competency Based Curriculum (CBC) class reported to Grade Eight, a crisis became apparent.

Learning at JSS is still being impacted by inadequate facilities, a lack of money, and a shortage of teaching and learning resources.The Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) asserted that inadequate staffing, teacher rivalry, and inadequate preparation shook the JSS last year, preventing proper learning from occurring in Grade Seven.

And yesterday, Kuppet Secretary General Akelo Misori said the implementation of JSS has disappointed parents and learners.“The government messed up a whole year for learners in JSS last year and the same continues to happen this year. It is not too late to change the tide and take them to high school,” Misori said.

Misori went on to say that the government is to blame for the chaos that exists in junior secondary education.While primary schools are having difficulty, our senior schools have a lot of underutilized resources. These consist of infrastructure and qualified educators,” he remarked.This occurred while Ezekiel Machogu, the cabinet secretary for education, stated that everything is proceeding according to plan for second-tier students.

Primary school head teachers, who also double as principals of the JSS, told The Standard nothing has improved as the issues they raised last year have not been addressed.Delayed funding also remains a major challenge even as teachers struggle to deliver curriculum in a constrained environment.

Johnson Nzioka, the chairman of Kenya Primary School Heads (Kepsha) said institutions have been weighed down by debt and delayed disbursement of capitation funds.“The challenge we have been facing is capitation in schools. As of now, learning has started even though schools are yet to receive the money,” Nzioka said.He added: “School heads are trying to survive with what they have. We are still incurring debts expecting funds to settle them later.”

Basic Education Principal Secretary Belio Kipsang, last week, said the Treasury had released school capitation funds. “I would like to assure our schools, and our head teachers, as well as our principals that we have released the funds. The resources you are required to receive we have released them. We have done so.”

One teacher for every JSS student, according to a head teacher in Nairobi County, is insufficient given the large number of students the teacher must manage.This is impeding the curriculum’s ability to be implemented effectively. There is just one instructor each class of JSS, with six streams totaling 370 students. The teacher declared that she was unable to carry out the curriculum in an efficient manner.

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