Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba before the National Assembly Committee on Implementation at Bunge Tower, Nairobi, on August 19, 2025.
Thousands of learners across the country resume classes tomorrow for Term 3, the shortest and most intensive period in the academic calendar lasting nine weeks.
During the period, candidates will sit for the Kenya Primary School Education Assessment (KPSEA), the Kenya Junior School Education Assessment (KJSEA), and the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE), which will run from October to November.
KPSEA is administered to Grade 6 learners and assesses readiness for Junior School but is not used for placement.
KJSEA is meant for Grade 9 learners for transition to Senior School under the Competency-Based Education (CBE) curriculum.
This is the first-ever cohort to sit for this assessment. Some 1.2 million learners—the pioneer cohort of CBE—are expected to transition to Senior School next year.
Placement will be based on students' preferred pathways and subject combinations, as well as cumulative academic performance from Grades 6 to 9, including both formative and summative assessments.
Kenya has adopted three pathways in Senior Schools: Social Sciences, Arts and Sports, and Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM).
However, Mathematics, Community Service, English, and Swahili remain compulsory in all the trio.
KCSE is administered to Form 4 students and is the final national secondary test.
“This term is critical for learners, teachers, and education stakeholders as it marks major transitions under CBE,” said Kenya Secondary Schools Heads Association (Kessha) National Chairman Willy Kuria.
Mr Kuria appealed to parents to allow learners time to revise and to support schools financially.
He asked them to help run schools due to challenges in the capitation.
“If parents want the children to perform well, they should take into consideration that schools have not been receiving the full capitation.
|"If they are called upon by the boards of management to assist in purchasing items for exams, they should do so, because we cannot let the children suffer,” he added.
Mr Kuria, who is also the Murang’a High School Chief Principal, raised concern over the high cost of managing Term 3, calling it a capital-intensive term due to extensive revision, purchase of revision materials, and preparation for expensive practical exams in sciences, agriculture, home science, and foreign languages such as French.
He said schools have not received capitation, making it hard to meet exam preparation needs, especially in day and county institutions.
He said the schools are owed up to Sh5,506 per learner in shortfalls.
In Term Two, Kessha says, schools were supposed to receive 30 per cent of the annual allocation, translating to Sh6,673 per student.
However, only Sh3,471 was released, leaving a shortfall of Sh3,202 per learner.
For Term One, the expected allocation was Sh11,122, but only Sh8,818 was released, leaving a balance of Sh2,304.
“Combined, the government owes us about Sh18 billion for first and second term. In third term, we are supposed to receive 20 per cent of the Sh22,000 capitation. We hope that the capitation will be wired to accounts when schools reopen on Monday,” Mr Kuria told the Nation in an interview.
Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba on Friday admitted to the Nation that the capitation funds had not been released but said the ministry was fast-tracking the process.
Mr Ogamba had in June told Parliament that public primary and secondary schools were choking in debt, with the Ministry of Education admitting that they could be grappling with debts of up to Sh64 billion accumulated over the years.
National Parents Association chairperson Silas Obuhatsa urged parents to guide and support learners in Grade 6, Grade 9, and Form 4.
“Prepare them psychologically for final assessments. Help achieve a 100 per cent transition rate. But principals, please do not send learners home immediately since most parents haven't received August salaries,” he said.
The Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers (Kuppet) Chairman, Omboko Milemba and Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut) Deputy National Chairman Malel Langat urged students to prepare for the exams and assessments adequately.
The Kenya National Examination Council (Knec) Chief Executive Officer, David Njengere, said everything is ready for the exams and assessments.
The council released the timetable for the 2025 Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (Kcse) examination four months ago to allow schools to start preparing the candidates.
“Knec is ready to administer the exams and assessments,” said Dr Njengere.
Mr Obuhatsa said traffic police officers should ensure parents taking their children to school arrive safely. “Support their children’s safe travel as schools reopen. Deploy traffic police for road safety,” he added.
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He also warned candidates against engaging in strikes and mischief during the third term. “Do not engage in indiscipline. Focus on exams; don’t waste time.
Parents expect good results. Remember you are going to do your final exams. Do not waste time on things that will not add value to your future. Parents are expecting good results at the end of this year,” he said.
