KICD seeks to design market oriented curriculum for senior school
KICD seeks to design market oriented curriculum for senior school
The task of creating curriculum for Senior School (SS) that will expedite the Kenya Kwanza government’s focus on employment development has been placed on the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD).
In order to guarantee that young people are employed, KICD Council Chairman Simon Gicharu stated that curricula had to be in line with the Bottom Up Economic Transformation (BETA) paradigm.During an introduction training for senior management at KICD, Prof. Gicharu gave a speech to appraise them of the ongoing curriculum reforms and enable the council to provide the required guidance for the Competency Based Curriculum (CBC) to be implemented effectively.
“As a council, we have a responsibility to ensure that the teaching and learning resources fulfill international standards for use in basic education and teacher education and training in Kenya, as well as to approve all curricula created or approved by the institute,” he stated.
In order to empower young people and hasten Kenya’s growth and development, the KICD chairman requested that the management make sure that locally and globally market-oriented courses, such as marine science, aviation science, and foreign languages, including German, French, and Mandarin, are offered at senior school.
“We should take advantage of the worldwide employment prospects by providing pertinent courses that align with the industry’s current needs,” Gicharu stated.In Senior School, which runs from Grades 10 to 12, there are three professional pathways available according to the Basic Education Curriculum Framework (2017).
These are Arts and Sports Science, Social Sciences and Stem (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics).It is important to get Senior School curriculum properly conceptualized before the university takes it up. In Senior School, students who will be taking Technical Studies track, will acquire dual certification.
KICD Chief Executive Officer Charles Ong’ondo, said that CBC is a dynamic curriculum for the globe.”KICD takes cognizance of the vision and mission of the Competency Based Curriculum which is to nurture every learners potential and have engaged, empowered and ethical citizens in the 21st century,” said Prof Ongondo.He noted that CBC intends to expose learners to the changing demands in the job market.
Gicharu said that it is prudent to work towards achieving set goals for growth and development of the Institute.“There are three critical pillars for the success of any organisation, which are planning, financial management, and governance. These pillars must be taken into consideration for prudent management,” he said.
Gicharu emphasized that KICD is the only government organization tasked with creating, reviewing, assessing, and approving curricula, programs, and curriculum support materials that adhere to international standards for use in basic, tertiary, and training education during the retreat at the PrideInn Paradise Beach Resort in Mombasa.Under Prof. Raphael Munavu’s direction, the Presidential Working Party on Education Reforms (PWPER) saw KICD as a major implementer and stakeholder in the role.
KICD has accomplished the review of curriculum designs up to Grade 10 in line with the recommendations in the PWPER and is ready to have them approved by the Council as required by the Act.“The approval of the designs is expected to take place in late February 2024,” said Ong’ondo.The CEO assured the public that learning areas were not scrapped or done away with but were carefully and critically looked at and KICD ensured that related strands and sub-strands were accommodated in one learning area.
“KICD has ensured that critical competencies that learners are supposed to have are not lost but realised in the rationalised learning areas,” he said.”There is no cause for alarm as the process has not watered down the quality of CBC,” he added.
It is recommended that curriculum implementers, such as educators, administrators, and Curriculum Support Officers (CSOs), obtain access to the designs and utilize them for the purpose of interpreting and organizing the strands and sub-strands, making timetables, and developing lesson plans that will facilitate effective teaching and learning. Teachers unions and other organizations in the education sector have already received copies of the draft designs. Curriculum designs and other resources are modified by KICD for Special Needs Education (SNE) students who are Physically Handicapped/Impaired (PI), Visually Impaired (VI), and Hearing Impaired (HI) in addition to those for ordinary students.
“The Institute has reviewed the adapted designs for VI, HI, and PI. Those following the Stage Based Curriculum from the Foundational level, Intermediate, and Pre-Vocational levels have their teaching and learning materials reworked on,” said Ong’ondo.According to the PWPER report presented to President William Ruto on August 1, 2023 by Prof Raphael Munavu Party, learning areas in Basic Education were recommended as follows:
Subject counts for Pre-Primary (PP1–PP2) should not exceed five (5); subjects for Lower Primary (Grades 1-3) should not exceed seven (7); subjects for Upper Primary (Grades 4-6) should not exceed eight (8); subjects for Junior School (Grades 7-9) should not exceed nine (9); and subjects for Senior School (Grades 10–12) should not exceed seven (7).
