A survey report by the Usawa Agenda has revealed that a third of grade 6 boys and girls across the country struggle with reading English as the Kenya Primary School Education Assessment (KPSEA) nears.
The KPSEA examinations are scheduled to take place from October 28 to October 30, 2024.
According to the Usawa Agenda report, 36.1% of grade 6 boys and 31.8% of grade 6 girls did not meet expectations in reading a grade 3 appropriate English story.
More grade 6 learners in public primary schools (36.4%) did not meet expectations in reading a grade 3 appropriate English story, compared to their counterparts in private primary schools (21.3%).
Grade 6 Learners Can’t Read Grade 3 English
Across both categories of schools, the percentage of grade 6 girls who could not read a grade 3 appropriate English story was lower than the percentage of grade 6 boys who could not read a grade 3 appropriate English story.
More grade 6 learners in rural areas (38.2%) did not meet expectations in reading a grade 3 appropriate English story compared to their urban areas’ counterparts (28.7%).
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Furthermore, it was revealed that 36.5% of grade 6 girls in rural areas did not meet expectations in reading a grade 3 appropriate English story.
Grade 4 Girls Outperform Boys in English and Math Proficiency
Similarly, only 35.9% of grade 4 learners met expectations in reading a grade 3-level English story and solving a grade 3-level numeracy problem.
Among them, 33.8% of grade 4 boys and 38.2% of grade 4 girls achieved these expectations.
Grade 4 learners in urban areas outperformed their rural-area counterparts in both reading a grade 3 appropriate English story and solving a grade 3 appropriate numeracy problem.
Across both geographies, grade 4 girls outperformed boys in reading a grade 3 appropriate English story and solving a grade 3 appropriate numeracy problem.
The girls’ enrolment rate in primary school was higher than the boys’ enrolment rate and they generally outperformed boys in basic literacy and numeracy assessment tests.
At the secondary school level, boys outperformed girls, yet at primary school level girls outperformed boys.
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Rift valley Leads in Teenage Pregnancy
Meanwhile, teenage pregnancy remains a major handicap to girls’ education as the national return to school policy flounders.
An estimated 19,230 teenage girls were reported pregnant in the year of the study (2023).
Rift Valley region contributed the most to the national teenage pregnancy burden at 35.8%, while Northeastern region contributed the least at 0.07%.
Nationally, less than half of the girls who were reported pregnant (42.5%) returned to school after delivery
Majority of primary school heads (42.8%) cited unsupportive community as the main challenge in supporting teenage mothers who return to school followed by stigma at 31.5%.
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