By Lydia Ngoolo
Kenya Secondary School Heads Association (KESSHA) Chairman Kahi Indimuli who is also Chief Principal at Machakos Boys High School has called for collective responsibility to end school unrests.
Kahi appealed to all education stakeholders to end blame game and come up with a permanent solutions to end the strikes adding that the children are putting their parents in unnecessary losses of paying for the damaged properties in school instead of focusing on education.
He observed that strikes cannot be attributed to one reason since there are different reactions from students in different schools leading to strikes thus hard to pinpoint one reason.
“There are so many speculations being made and some cannot even hold water. The schools should help in what they know in regard to strikes,” he added.
The chairman pointed to key issues which needed to be addressed instead of blame games. One key issue being indiscipline where there is rising defiance countrywide.
“When indiscipline pronounces itself, defiance comes leading to anarchy. If seniors defy, then juniors (students) follow them. We need to address this issue from the national perspective and lead by example even at the family level,” Kahi.
Another key issue pointed was school indiscipline brought about by changes of law and guidelines on managing students.
The chief principal noted that guidance and counseling offered in school is a long term process as child is needed to attend many sessions. He said this was an added responsibility to guidance teachers and increased workload since they have their subjects to teach as well.
“Their load should be reduced by employing more teachers. This means more money from the exchequer thus a collective responsibility to all of us in finding solution,” said the Chairman.
Kahi questioned the parents’ responsibilities as it was noted that many students started taking drugs during the covid-19 holiday.
He cautioned students that as they engage in their unrest they will be on their own if caught and that the law was the only solution.
Kahi appealed to all principals not to readmit any students involved with strikes in their schools. He also urged private schools not to accept such students in their schools and only take students with proper transfer letters.
However he called for solutions to be made like reintroducing inter-school competition after midterm.
“The students are very energetic and need to make use of their energy through games. Engaging with other students could be a therapy as well,” he added.
He called for review of education act as well as children’s act as he appealed for national dialogue on discipline, infrastructure and funding.
“Funding is very problematic as we speak. Schools are indebted since government capitation delays and is inadequate since you find some students missing in NEMIS handled by registrar of persons,” Kahi concluded.
