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{
    "id": 712850,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/712850/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 295,
    "type": "other",
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    "content": "many years, the national examinations were not leaked. The administration of the examinations was the smoothest in recent memory. Various stakeholders assisted in the administration including the Teachers’ Service Commission, the Kenya National Examinations Council and the Ministry for Interior and Coordination of National Government, among others. We thank them all for the collaborated effort. Many useful lessons can be drawn from the successful administration of the 2016 National Examinations. The most significant, however, is that with effective collaboration and coordination amongst the relevant agencies of Government, virtually any national task and objectives of Government can be met. Going forward, therefore, the Ministry of Education will endeavor to ensure effective cooperation and collaboration with all relevant actors to fully reform and strengthen the education system. Secondly, we have learnt that the Government has all the machinery and capacity to run a clean, transparent and credible national examination. All we need is careful planning and a committed staff who operate with high level of integrity. With regard to payment of school fees by the Government, the Government is committed to ensuring that every child gets access to education at all levels. As of now, children enrolled in public schools are accessing free primary and free day secondary education. That included payment of the KCPE and Kenya Certificate of Secondary School (KCSE) examination fees by the Government. The government will from next year extend the payment of examination fees to all KCPE and KCSE students in private schools. This is a commendable move by the Government and testimony of its determination to improve access to education for all children. It is the Government’s desire to make education affordable and accessible to Kenyan children. For this reason, the Ministry of Education wishes to announce that fees charged in all public schools in 2017 will remain the same as it was this year. That should answer Sen. (Prof.) Lonyangapuo. Principals to schools who will not follow the guidelines will not be tolerated. The release of the examination results should not be a ritual but a moment for the careful reflection of all parties involved in the education process. On a gloomy note, I wish to state that the Ministry is aware of some private schools that operate multiple examination centres with an aim of engaging in unethical practices meant to enable them to record favorable rankings in national examinations. This is a form of malpractice since the proprietors of these schools are clearly using innocent pupils in an unscrupulous marketing exercise for their businesses. As it were, these schools register weaker pupils at sister or satellite examination centres so as not to bring down the mean scores of their main marketing schools. We have discovered that the majority of these schools that offload weaker pupils usually have a smaller candidature between 20 and 30 of their best candidates. These abnormal centres are the ones that top charts wherever school ranking is done. Indeed, some of these schools will, today, be captured celebrating in our TV channels. Fortunately, these schools have nowhere to hide. We will name and shame them. I wish to announce that the Ministry has resolved to stamp out this unethical practice once and for all. For a start, the Kenya National Examinations Council (KNEC) will not register these schools as centres for national examinations starting 2017. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate"
}