In many schools across Kenya, a silent crisis continues to erode the foundations of quality education — the persistent reality of overcrowded classrooms. While education reforms have introduced new curricula, expanded access, and raised awareness around inclusivity, one fundamental issue remains largely unresolved: the sheer number of learners crammed into spaces never designed to hold them.
A classroom, in its ideal form, is meant to be a space for meaningful interaction — a setting where teachers can nurture the individual strengths of each learner, provide tailored feedback, and spark curiosity through creative teaching methods. But this vision is nearly impossible to achieve when a single teacher is tasked with managing seventy, eighty, or even over a hundred pupils in a single room. Under such conditions, the classroom becomes not a place of discovery, but one of endurance — for both teacher and learner.
The most immediate casualty of overcrowding is the loss of individual attention. Learners absorb and understand material at different paces, and many require additional support to grasp key concepts. In smaller classes, teachers can identify and respond to these needs early. But in overcrowded ones, struggling pupils often fade into the background, unnoticed and unsupported, while more advanced learners are left unchallenged and disengaged. Teaching becomes mechanical, driven by urgency rather than purpose.
Discipline and classroom management also suffer under such conditions. With too many learners packed into one space, maintaining order becomes a constant challenge. Noise levels rise, distractions increase, and teachers often find themselves spending more time controlling the class than delivering instruction. The environment becomes chaotic and frustrating, especially for learners who thrive in structured, calm spaces.
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Beyond the pedagogical challenges, overcrowded classrooms put immense pressure on physical and learning resources. Desks are shared by three or more learners. Some children are forced to sit on the floor. Textbooks, where available, are stretched thin — shared by up to five students. Libraries are either too small or completely absent. Chalkboards can’t be seen clearly from the back of the room. Ventilation is poor, and the physical discomfort that results makes learning harder to sustain. In many cases, even access to clean toilets is a challenge due to the sheer number of learners using too few sanitation facilities.
Teachers are not spared. In fact, they bear the brunt of this reality. With large numbers come increased workloads — more assignments to mark, more learners to track, more behavioral issues to manage, and more expectations to meet. Burnout becomes common. Morale dips. Some teachers find themselves trapped between the desire to help and the limits of what’s possible under the circumstances. The emotional weight is heavy, and over time, it takes a toll on the quality of instruction.
This crisis is even more glaring under Kenya’s Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC). The CBC is designed to be learner-centred, focusing on skills, creativity, and continuous assessment. It demands more interaction, hands-on activities, and regular teacher-learner engagement. But these are difficult, if not impossible, to implement in a classroom so crowded that movement is limited and personal engagement is a luxury. In theory, CBC promises a revolution in how we educate. In practice, overcrowded classrooms threaten to reduce that promise to paperwork and slogans.
The risks go beyond academic outcomes. Overcrowded classrooms pose serious health and safety hazards. Poor air circulation, inadequate space, and overburdened sanitation facilities increase the risk of disease transmission. In emergencies — fires, stampedes, or building collapses — the consequences could be catastrophic.
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And yet, teachers continue to show up. Day after day, they step into overcrowded classrooms, driven by a sense of duty and hope. But it is both unfair and unsustainable to expect them to carry the weight of a broken system on their own. This is not a matter of teacher effort or student attitude. It is a structural issue — one that requires urgent, coordinated, and well-funded intervention.
Addressing the problem begins with honest acknowledgment. Classrooms are overcrowded because infrastructure development has not kept pace with enrolment growth. Because teacher recruitment and deployment are insufficient. Because resources are unevenly distributed. And because education, while frequently discussed, is not always adequately financed.
If we are serious about meaningful change, solutions must be just as systemic. The Ministry of Education and the Teachers Service Commission must work with county governments and school communities to construct new classrooms, recruit more teachers, and expand access to learning materials and digital tools. Class size policies must be revisited and enforced, especially in early grades where individual attention is most critical. Investments must be channeled into infrastructure, sanitation, libraries, ICT integration, and safe learning environments.
Because if we are truly committed to building an education system that empowers, transforms, and uplifts, then overcrowded classrooms must no longer be treated as normal. A child cannot learn in a crush of bodies. A teacher cannot thrive under the weight of unmanageable numbers. And a country cannot move forward while its future sits stifled in classrooms built for half their load.
It’s time to stop normalizing crisis and start creating space — space to think, to teach, to breathe, and above all, to learn.
By Hillary Muhalya
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