The Ministry of Education announced a raft of revised rules that will see primary schools’ names changed in the country as the implementation of Junior Secondary Schools (JSS) under the Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC) takes shape.
Under the new guidelines, the ministry says comprehensive schools – those with both primary and junior secondary – shall adopt the name of the primary school in which they are domiciled, “except in special circumstances”.
“For the purpose of the Bank accounts, the Primary School and Junior Secondary Schools shall have separate Bank Accounts,” the ministry says.
As for school uniforms, the JSS leadership has been tasked with determining the uniform for their schools in consultation with their respective stakeholders.
The ministry however warned school heads against directing parents on specific uniform stores to purchase from.
“At a minimum, one pair of uniforms is recommended per learner. The uniform shall be the responsibility of parents and no school shall direct parents where to purchase the uniform.”
“No JSS learners shall be excluded for failure to afford a school uniform and the JSS uniform shall be sensitive to the cultural and religious values of the respective communities. Special consideration SHALL be made in view of different climatic conditions,” it added.
JSS students shall be taking 12 core subjects and one or two optional subjects.
The core subjects are English, Kiswahili or KSL, Mathematics, Integrated Science, Health Education, Pre-technical and Pre-career education, Social Studies, Religious Education (CRE, IRE or HRE), Business Studies, Agriculture, Life skills, Sports and Physical Education.
The optional subjects comprise Visual Arts, Performing Arts, Home Science, Computer Science, Foreign Languages (German, French, or Mandarin) Arabic, Kenyan Sign Language and Indigenous Language.
In the meantime, learners at the Pre-Vocational level will be assessed in 9 subjects Communication, Social and Literacy Skills, Daily Living Skills, Mathematics Activities, Music and Movement, Religious Education, Christian Religious Education, Hindu Religious Education, Islamic Religious Education; Physical and Health Education, Hygiene, Nutrition and Safety, Environmental Activities, and Social Studies.
Students transitioning to JSS will not be required to pay any school fees as the government has already set aside Sh15,000 for each of the over 1 million Grade 6 pupils who sat their KPSEA exams in November last year.
Education CS Ezekiel Machogu said only schools with boarding wings will be allowed to charge fees.
A total of 1,287,597 Grade Six pupils sat their KPSEA exams between November 28 and November 30.
The examination results were however not used for placement of learners in JSS but as part of the process of monitoring learner progress.
President William Ruto had directed the junior secondary schools – Grade 7, Grade 8 and Grade 9 – to be domiciled in the existing primary schools.
