A new report by the Kenya National Examinations Council (Knec) has identified major learning gaps in learners at the foundational level under the competency-based education (CBE).
According to the National Assessment System for Monitoring Learner Achievement (NASMLA) Grade 3 study, nearly three out of four Grade Three learners cannot perform basic mathematics at the expected level, raising fresh concerns over the state of foundational learning in the country.
The midline report by the Knec shows that 73.2 per cent of Grade 3 learners failed to attain minimum proficiency in numeracy, while 58.9 percent struggling with basic English literacy.
Literacy proficiency is key to learning because, without it, learners cannot read, making learning difficult, especially since even numeracy questions are often presented in paragraph form.
The dismal performance is closely linked to teacher absenteeism, uneven access to learning resources, including textbooks, assistive devices, and basic infrastructure.
“The Ministry of Education should provide adequate teaching and learning resources such as textbooks, supplementary books and class readers as well as other resources,” KNEC recommends in the report.
The study carried out in 2024 that monitored learners' achievement, dubbed National Assessment System for Monitoring Learner Achievement (NASMLA), was conducted under the Kenya Primary Education Equity in Learning Program (KPEEL).
The findings show that nationally, 41.4 per cent of learners achieved the 50 per cent benchmark at Level 4 in English language activities, while only 26.8 per cent reached the same benchmark in numeracy.
The midline study, which sampled 250 schools countrywide, shows an improvement compared to the baseline findings, where 23.9 per cent of learners achieved the Level 4 benchmark in English and 15.8 per cent in mathematical activities.
Teacher absenteeism, mainly attributed to sickness and official duties, remains a concern at 44.4 per cent nationally, rising to 75 percent in refugee camp schools and 62.5 percent in informal settlement schools.
The NASMLA report, carried out in partnership with Mizizi Elimu Africa, comes on the back of equally worrying findings by Usawa Agenda, which found that one in three Grade 6 learners cannot read and comprehend Grade 3-level English.
The report by the State agency closely mirrors other reports on foundational learning done by independent organisations. For example, in January Usawa Agenda published study findings that showed that half of the learners in Grade 6 can neither read and comprehend a Grade 3-level English story nor solve numeracy problems for that level.
It further showed that the learners are ill-prepared for study in junior school and subsequent learning. Grade 6 is the last class in primary school before learners transit to junior school under the CBE.
The Foundational Literacy and Numeracy Assessment Report (FLANA 2025) report showed a troubling scenario especially for those in public primary schools where 51.3 percent of the Grade 6 learners cannot read and comprehend a Grade 3-appropriate English story. 42.3 percent of learners in private schools also lack the basic literacy and numeracy skills.
Kenyan universities have been repeatedly warned that a new kind of student will arrive in 2029: the first cohort shaped entirely by CBE.
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The Foundational Literacy and Numeracy Assessment (FLANA) report highlighted that the trend was worse in rural areas and public schools, raising concern as learners are at a critical stage in the competency-based education (CBE) journey, preparing to sit the Kenya Junior School Education Assessment (KJSEA).
KNEC regularly assesses the achievement of learning outcomes in literacy and numeracy at the end of the lower primary level.
Overall, the studies have pointed to low achievement in basic literacy skills among Class 3 pupils. In a 2016 study, only 28 per cent of learners demonstrated Level 4 reading skills (reading for meaning), which reflect the ability to interpret and make inferences from text, meaning 71.4 per cent did not demonstrate these higher-order thinking skills.
The 2018 study registered a slight improvement with 42.1 percent of the learners performing at level 4, meaning that the number of learners not able to read for meaning accounted for 57.9 percent.
In the latest NASMLA report, nationally, girls performed slightly better than boys in English Activities, recording a mean score of 17.3 compared to 16.5 for boys. In Mathematical Activities, the national mean score was 17.3, with girls and boys performing at par.
At the county level, Nandi County recorded the highest mean score in English Activities (22.9), followed by Kajiado County (22.1) and Kirinyaga County (21.1), while Busia County had the lowest (9.9).
In Mathematical Activities, Nandi County again recorded the highest mean score (21.8), followed by Kajiado County (20.7) and Garissa County (21.2), whereas Turkana County recorded the lowest mean score (14.2).
At the Foundation Level under the stage-based curriculum, less than 50 percent of learners achieved the Meeting Expectation level in most pre-numeracy tasks in both the Baseline and Midline studies, indicating limited mastery of the assessed skills.
The findings show that schools are making efforts to strengthen communication with parents, with 49.6% of schools holding parent meetings three times annually.
