By Roy Hezron
Candidates with special needs posted remarkable results in the 2020 Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) released yesterday with the highest candidate scoring 420 marks.
According to the results, there was a great improvement in the number of candidates who scored a mark range of 200 to 299 marks by 171 candidates with 897 candidates (representing 33.53 per cent) scoring 200-299 marks in 2020 from 726 (representing 30.16) candidates in 2019.
“The Ministry remains committed to assisting learners with special needs to do well in their studies,” said Education Cabinet Secretary Prof George Magoha in KNEC headquarters during the release ceremony.
Another great improvement was also recorded in the number of special need candidates scoring a mark range of 300-399 which increased by 107 candidates from 211 (representing 8.77 per cent) candidates in 2019 to 318 (representing 11.89 per cent) in 2020.
However, majority of the candidates with special needs scored between 100 to 199 mark ranges, with a total of 1,356 (representing 50.69 per cent) candidates in 2020 scoring between 100-199 as compared to 1,350 (representing 56.09 per cent) candidates in 2019 which was a slight increase of only 6 candidates.
Though a number of candidates who scored between 001-099 marks dropped by 34 candidates with only 11 (representing 0.41 per cent) candidates in 2020 as compared to 45 (representing 1.87 per cent) candidates in 2019.
The number of candidates with Special Needs was higher in the year 2020 (2,675 candidates) when compared to that of 2019 (2,407 candidates), with the highest number of candidates with special needs in the 2020 KCPE examination being those with physical disabilities (1,201 candidates), followed by those with hearing impairment (738 candidates).
“This improvement further underscores the fact that performance in the 2020 KCPE was commendable and that SNE children, given a fair and conducive environment, can excel,” noted Prof. Magoha.
The number of candidates who sat the KCPE examination under special circumstances, including those who sat the examination in hospitals, increased from 1,176 in the year 2019 to 1,255 in 2020.
