Grade 10 learners arrive at Kisumu Boys High School for Senior Secondary reporting.
As the first-term half-term break beckons, a cloud of uncertainty hangs over thousands of Grade 10 learners across the country who reported to senior schools without fees following President William Ruto’s directive.
The parents of the pioneer cohort of the competency-based education (CBE) said they do not know the fate of their children after principals began issuing stern ultimatums, demanding that the students report back from the break only after clearing pending fee arrears. The half-term break begins next week on Tuesday with learners expected back in school the following week.
Principals are demanding for fees saying schools have bills to pay to run efficiently including payment of board of management teachers, electricity, water and security guards.
In January, President William Ruto issued a directive that schools take in learners in Grade 10 regardless of their ability to pay immediate fees or provide new uniforms.
The President Ruto and Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba were aiming at achieving a 100 percent transition from junior to senior school, threatening principals with dismissal if they turned away needy Grade 10 learners.
A Grade 10 student and her parent keenly listen to a teacher at Kisumu Girls High School during admission.
However, as the term nears its midpoint, school heads argue that the lack of parental contribution, combined with delayed or insufficient funding by the government, has left institutions financially crippled.
“We have Grade 10 students who haven't paid a single cent since January. We have been feeding them and providing learning materials on credit. We cannot sustain this into the second half of the term,” said a principal from a Cluster 2 boarding school in Kilifi County.
While the government recently gazetted a standard fee structure, the reality on the ground remains complex.
Day senior schools are theoretically free, with the government supposed to provide Sh22,244 per learner annually. However, costs like lunch levies still force learners out of school.
In boarding senior schools, the fees are capped between Sh40,535 for Cluster 2 schools and Sh53,554 for Cluster 1 schools.
Ms Margaret Masha who took her daughter Salma Mohammed to Mwalukombe Girls Secondary School without any fees following the Presidential directive is now worried.
“I was called by the school to pay the first term fees. I am distraught. I don't know what to do anymore. I was told the State had paid Sh22,444 and I am supposed to pay the remaining Sh40,535. I don’t know my daughter’s fate,” said Ms Masha.
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A senior school principal said he has had to call parents personally to plead with them to pay school fees.
"We should not politicise education matters. Telling students to go to school without any fees is very bad. What are they supposed to eat? For boarding, I am lucky that parents are supportive, I just pity my colleagues in day schools,” said the principal from Kisumu County.
Another principal said she has written letters to parents to pay fees when the children go home for the half-term break.
Grade 10 students stranded for the second day after a well-wisher who promised to sponsor their admission to Grade 10 duped them.
“They are going to half-term and we have asked their parents to pay before they resume. Now the rubber has met the road, President Ruto is not the principal,” said a principal. Education experts warn that the transition to senior school is at a breaking point due to funding challenges.
Also Read: Explainer - How Senior School works
“When these directives are given, they should be followed by action. When we say students are admitted unconditionally that is a stop-gap [measure]. But the financial needs must be addressed. The State should fund education to ensure learning is not interrupted,” said the Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC), Deputy Executive Director Cornelius Oduor.
Mr Oduor who is also an education expert said principals are caught in a catch-22 situation.
“They have a directive which they must follow but also need money to run the schools. Schools that received these students with no payment of fees should get funding,” said Mr Oduor.
However, he lauded the Head of State for ensuring the almost 100 per cent transition. He said this ensures education is accessible to all Kenyan children.
“However, making a public announcement with no deliberate action to support schools means you are playing to the public gallery. Education officials have data of learners who turned up following the directives. Telling parents to take children is good, but it needs to be followed by a program of action which means funding,” he said.
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