By Obegi Malack
Education stakeholders have expressed concerns over lack of equipped computer laboratories in schools ahead of grade 6 learners joining Junior Secondary Schools (JSS).
The stakeholders, mainly teachers, have called upon the government to allocate more money to equip schools with computers, since Computer Studies is among the major subjects in JSS.
Principal of St Brigid Baraka Oontoyie Girls Secondary School in Kajiado County Jemimah Mutia said many learners from the school choose Computer Studies as a technical subject.
She explained that in the current Form 2 class, over 60 students chose Computer Studies and that they were forced to reduce the number to fifty.
“The government should therefore allocate more funds for the purchase of computers to allow more students study the subject and have practical lessons,” she said.
Magumoni Girls Secondary School principal Catherine Mbole noted that computer teachers mostly join technical institutions as they are not comfortable teaching in ill-equipped secondary schools.
The Digital Literacy programme was among President Uhuru Kenyatta’s projects for Kenyans in 2013.
The project that cost Ksh24.6 billion was later transformed from issuance of laptops to tablets for Class 1 pupils.
It faced many challenges ranging from poor state of most primary schools, budget cuts by Ksh 5.5 billion, lack of power connectivity, and haphazard curriculum and teacher training.
A report released in 2018 by the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD) indicated that only 39 per cent of teachers used ICT in teaching.
KNEC will administer a summative assessment for all the 2022 Grade 6 learners from 28th to 30th November 2022.
In compliance with the 100 per cent transition policy, all learners will be placed in JSS in January 2023.
