Education Cabinet Secretary Ezekiel Machogu on Monday, September 25, unveiled a new grading system to be used in future national examinations.
In an event held at the New Mtihani House in Nairobi, the CS announced that Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) grades will henceforth be computed using two compulsory subjects, mathematics and one language.
In addition, examiners will include grades scored in five other best performed subjects.
“There will only be two mandatory subjects that will be required for the purposes of computing these grades,”Machogu stated.
According to CS Machogu, this move will help to increase the rate of graduates’ transitioning into universities and technical institutions.
“The new reform measure will increase the number of students qualifying for universities, diploma and TVET training,” he added.
Under the previous system, the mean grade of KCSE candidates was computed using the grades scored in English, Kiswahili, Mathematics, two sciences and a humanity subject.
On his part, Basic Education Principal Secretary Belio Kipsang expressed his confidence in the new grading system.
According to him, the change will help to avoid cases where candidates are prevented from pursuing their dream courses due to low grades in unrelated subjects.
KNEC’s New Measures
Further, the Kenya National Examination Council (KNEC) announced new measures to ensure transparency in the upcoming national exams.
Speaking during the event, KNEC CEO David Njegere announced that the council will use 567 containers during the course of the 2023 KCSE examinations.
The move, according to the KNEC official, was made to ensure all examination centers can easily access distribution centers conveniently.
Also Read: KNEC Announces Opportunities for Examiners, How to Apply
Moreover, Njegere announced that only authorized persons will be allowed to access examination centers.
In his remarks, the KNEC CEO further noted that the measure will help to ensure easier monitoring of activities within the centers.
Regarding weather conditions during the exam, KNEC said enough measures had been adopted to ensure a seamless exam period.
Also Read: PS Belio Kipsang Addresses Exam Cheating Ahead of KCSE, KCPE
The announcements came weeks before the scheduled KCSE examinations which are set to commence on October 23 and run until November 24.
Additionally, KNEC will administer the Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) and the Kenya Primary School Education Assessment (KPSEA) examinations from October 30, 2023, to November 1, 2023.
Whilst the 2022 examinations were marred with allegations of malpractice and cheating, CS Machogu assured parents of transparent examination exercise this year.
