An inequality crisis is brewing among senior school clusters in what is now threatening the successful rollout of the competency based education (CBE).
A survey by Elimu Bora Working Group (EBWG) has revealed Cluster 3 (C3) and Cluster 4 (C4) schools remain significantly under-resourced in infrastructure, staffing, and learning materials compared to their C1 and C2 counterparts.
The findings reveal a stark shortfall in specialised equipment and technical pathway textbooks, with C3 and C4 schools recording severe inadequacy at 20 percent, compared to just 8.7 percent in C1 schools.
Further, C3 and C4 schools face the most severe staffing shortages, with over 30 per cent reporting inadequacy, while the better-resourced C1 schools experience it at only 13 per cent.
“Urgent policy and administrative actions should include adoption of a needs-based funding formula that prioritises C3 and C4 schools to reduce inequity,” EBWG recommends in it Senior School Preparedness Survey report.
Overall, the study conducted between February and March 2026 across 14 counties, paints a troubling picture of senior schools’ unpreparedness to deliver the Grade 10 curriculum under CBE.
The findings show that only 6 percent of schools are fully staffed for Grade 10 with Arts & Sports pathway teachers being the most critically under-prepared.
“There is need to accelerate recruitment of STEM teachers, technical subject teachers, and Arts & Sports specialists to plug the teacher shortage gap,” said EBWG Policy and Strategy Advisor Boaz Waruku.
Grade 10 learners in Langalanga Senior School in Nakuru County attend a Chemistry lesson on February 5, 2026.
Photo credit: Boniface Mwangi | Nation Media Group
He added there is need to introduce affirmative staffing policies for C3 and C4 schools so that they can catch up with C3 and C4 schools.
Digital resources emerged as the most critical gap across all school categories with many institutions lacking computers, internet connectivity, projectors, smart learning devices, and specialised equipment required for technical and science pathways.
The survey whose respondents included senior school heads, Boards of Management (BOM), Ministry of Education (MoE) officials and Grade 10 parents, found that only 17 percent rated ICT laboratories as adequate.
The lobby noted the continued reliance on severely limited print materials undermines the competency based and technology driven vision that the curriculum seeks to advance.
“Infrastructure gap is the widest and barely any of the senior schools sampled ticked all the boxes. Some C3 and C4 schools absolutely had none,” said Mr Waruku.
To remedy this, the lobby is proposing the roll out of a phased infrastructure development plan spread across three to five years targeting, and prioritizing ICT labs, STEM labs, and workshops/technical rooms.
The EBWG findings expose significant weaknesses in policy support and education financing that threaten the smooth implementation of Grade 10.
More than half of the schools surveyed rated Grade 10 capitation as inadequate or minimal, while only 2.9 per cent considered the funding sufficient.
Respondents pointed to delayed disbursement of funds, weak operational support, and limited policy guidance from the Ministry of Education.
“A recurring concern across the survey is the perception that the government was not adequately prepared for the transition to Senior School despite years of planning around the EBWG says.
