The Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET), Laikipia Branch, has cautioned school heads against defying the Education Cabinet Secretary, Prof. George Magoha orders on school fees
The Branch Executive Secretary, Robert Miano noted that the ministry of education had set up fee guidelines and called on the schools’ board of managements and school heads to comply.
“As a union we will not condone any of our member to increase school fees for their own selfish gains. The government has clearly set up fee guidelines and every school management must observe and follow the same,” noted Miano.
The executive added that increasing fee beyond the already set up guidelines might prevent children from poor backgrounds from acquiring education.
“We should follow the set up guidelines and no child should be kept out of school due to school fees as a way of ensuring the 100 percent transition to secondary school,” he added.
He at the same time, cautioned principals over using other unjustified methods of exploiting money from parents.
Among the unjustified methods cited by parents include sale of uniforms in school and other personal items at expensive prices, with the executive, saying that this could burden parents with a fee increment.
Early last week, Prof. Magoha warned school boards of management against increasing fees, saying the government had set out guidelines that everyone must observe.
He said that day students should only be asked to buy school uniforms and the rest should be catered for by the school, including lunch fees.
Meanwhile, Eighty hundred and forty-two (842) students who achieved B- and above in 2019’s KCSE examinations may be absorbed in public universities out of a total of 13,965 students who sat for the exams in Kilifi County.
As the County grapples with improving its performances in both KCPE and KCSE national exams, none of the candidates managed to score an A plain as its mean score rose to 3.6321 having improved slightly compared to 2018 results.
Analysis available and given by the County quality assurance officer who is also Deputy Director of Education, Ms. Helen Arunga indicated that Bahari girls secondary school in Kilifi north Sub County leads and is to take 99 students followed by Ribe Boys in Rabai Sub County with 67 students who scored B- and above and met the minimum entry to the public universities.
Other high schools which improved their performances with a high number of students who met the minimum B- university entry are Kombeni girls in Rabai Sub County with 65 students, Barani high and Malindi high in Malindi Sub County with 54 and 31 students respectively.
In the analysis a total of 615 students obtained a C+ some of who could be selected to the public universities while those who did not get any results for various reasons comprised of a total of 78 students in the County.
By KNA Team
