Too many over-age students in Kilifi will derail CBC: official

Education officials are calling for speedy reforms after it was revealed that the number of over-age students in Kilifi County is the highest in the country.

In a dialogue meeting to discuss the implementation of the new Competence-Based Curriculum (CBC) on Wednesday, it was revealed that 85 percent of the students sitting for final exams in the county are over-age.

The research was done by Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development KICD, Kenya National Examination Council (KNEC) and other organisations.

The study sought to find out what contributes to low examination performance in the county.

Addressing journalists after the forum, Kilifi County Chief Executive Member (CEC) Gabriel Katana said the implementation of the CBC will not be helpful if this challenge is not addressed.

He expressed shock over the high number of over-age students in Kilifi schools saying:

“Let us address this issue and see how through the new curriculum the levels of performance can improve in our county.”

He gave an example of students aged 20 years enrolled at various primary schools in the county.

On his part, the Kilifi County Commissioner Magu Mutundika said other challenges facing the county and affecting the education sector include teenage pregnancy.

“The number stands at 17,000 but we believe through the task-force formed the numbers shall reduce,” said Mutindika.

He also noted that understaffing also poses a big challenge and urged the government to deploy more staff in schools to improve quality and performance of exams.

“If we need the CBC to be successful first we should address the challenges facing us, so that when implementing it, there will be a conducive environment,” he said.