Government to extend Term Two calendar to make up for lost time, CS Machogu says

Education Cabinet Secretary Ezekiel Machogu has announced that the government is planning to extend Term Two school dates to make up for time lost as a result of a two-week delay in the opening of learning institutions due to floods.

During a briefing on Thursday, the Education CS announced that the second term would be extended for an unspecified period to allow schools to adequately cover the syllabus, especially for candidates preparing for the national examinations scheduled for November this year.

"Particularly for Form Four candidates, we will see how we can recover time lost by extending [the second term by] a few days. They were expected to close for three weeks in August and we might minimise the number of days schools will be closed,” the minister said.

Schools were supposed to reopen for the second term on April 29, but the government postponed this in the wake of heavy rain and devastating floods that have so far killed more than 257 people.

Mr Machogu emphasised that while other aspects may be subject to change, the schedule for the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) and Kenya Primary School Education Assessment (KPSEA) examinations will remain unchanged. He confirmed that these exams will proceed in November as scheduled.

“The examination calendar remains the same; KCSE and KPSEA will be taken in the normal time from November,” he said.

However, the CS revealed that some schools in seven counties, including Tana River, Homa Bay, and Kisumu, might not reopen on Monday, because they were the most affected by the rains. He said the ministry will consider alternative learning arrangements, such as relocating students to safer locations. 

"We are going to release the names of the schools soon; however, two percent of schools might not open in Kisumu, Homa Bay and Tana River counties because they were the most affected by the rains," he said.

President William Ruto declared a Sh1 billion fund on Monday for rebuilding schools affected by floods.

Initially, the Schools were set for re-opening on April 29, 2024, however, due to disruptions caused by heavy rains, the reopening date was postponed to May 6, 2024.

President Ruto later on Friday last week directed the Ministry of Education to postpone re-opening all schools in the country following the flooding crisis.

"The devastating effects of the rains in some of the schools are so severe that it will be imprudent to risk the lives of learners and staff before water-tight measures are put in place to ensure adequate safety of all affected school communities," Mr Machogu stated.