Parents lament harsh treatment by head teachers as national exams start
Students sit their national exams. Parents are worried their children might miss out on national examinations starting today.
Rose Atieno Ongusu is a worried mother. Today, her son was supposed to sit for his Grade six exams at Unity Primary School in Umoja Innercore in Nairobi, if only his name was in the register and not in Igotho Primary School, in Kiambu.
The child, says Rose, was registered at Unity Primary School, but on Thursday, he told her that he had not been listed among those who will be sitting for their grade six assessment tests.
“I rushed to the school and the head teacher confirmed that his name was not in the records. I asked her to explain what happened, because we had submitted all requirements to enable the child to sit for his exams. She said she did not know, and asked me to confirm that we had not registered our child in a different school,” said Ms Atieno.
“Using my child’s index number and name, she found out that my child has been registered in Kiambu County. She said she didn’t know where the school was, but promised to visit the Kenya National Examinations Council (KNEC) Offices the next day to investigate.
“I went back on Saturday, but the head teacher was cold towards me. She insisted that my child would use an answer sheet with someone else’s name, and that she would follow up with KNEC, who would then sort out the issue.”
When called for response, the Principal, Ms Catherine Birir said all matters that concern the school are handled within the school, and that any parent that has an issue should take it up with the school.
“I want to believe that this lady has brought the matter to the school and that she has been given a response. Everything that happens within the school shall be done within regulations of KNEC, including providing reports where they are needed. Any concerns that parents might have shall be addressed within the school and as provided by the ministry and KNEC,” said Ms Birir.
Ms Atieno’s son is not alone. In May 2022, Leah Onyango, a single mum, transferred her 13-year-old daughter, a registered Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) candidate at Bethel Springs Academy Utawala in Nairobi. Her daughter, she said, was brutally beaten by a teacher at the school.
"I realised that my daughter was slowly but surely getting into depression. I acted out of love and concern. I was worried that if she continued learning at the institution, her results would drastically deteriorate," said Ms Onyango.
But now, she is afraid her daughter may not sit the national exam.
"She went to the school on Friday during rehearsals. But she was turned away. The head teacher told her that she should carry her desk and chair that she'll use during the exams," said Ms Onyango.
"She was discriminated against. She was in fact warned of interacting with his former classmates. I wonder what the three days she'll access the premises will change if they allow my daughter to sit the exams."
The daughter joined Bethel Springs Academy in class six and had been learning there until the time of the incident, some two years later.
Bethel Springs Academy head teavher, who only introduced herself as Madam Veronica, however, told Nation.Africa that she discontinued the pupil in question for accrued fee arrears of Sh70,000 running two years.
"The school has 125 candidates. This is a huge number and we ran out of chairs. It is true I told the candidate to come with a chair. We provided her with the desk but asked her to buy a chair," said the head teacher.
"And, as a norm, pupils who have been away, when they come to sit their exams, we limit their interactions with the ones we've been preparing ourselves for the national exams."
In Kajiado, Nkaimurunya Primary School head teacher is also on the spot for deliberately failing to register students, most of them autistic, for the Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) examinations.
The affected would have been registered under a special category of pupils.
Despite being bonafide pupils of the school, Ms Charity Marinda did not register the students and gave a dress-down to aggrieved parents who had gone to school to appeal their case.
The head teacher, the pupils said, has always reminded them that they will not sit for the national exams.
“Na mkumbuke wewe hufanyi mtihani(don’t forget that you aren’t sitting for the exams),” a pupil said the head teacher has repeatedly told them.
KNEC registers pupils for the exams through the various school head teachers.
It emerged that the three who have always been told that they were not registered, had their names substituted. In their place, Nation.Africa learnt, other students have been placed, much to the chagrin of the pupils’ parents.
“My child may look fine. But deeply troubled by the thoughts of missing out on the exams,” a parent narrated.
When schools opened in April for first term, the KNEC timelines dictated that schools register their pupils with a tentative deadline as May 14.
On May 17, one of the parents whose child was not registered reached out to the school head teacher seeking an explanation, pleading to have their child included in the list. But was dismissed.
“The head teacher was so rude. She was very hostile too... I shed tears. I couldn’t stand the cruel demeaning words she used,” a parent lamented.
The parent told Nation.Africa that the head teacher “looked at me straight in the eyes and told me that she won’t be registering ‘wajinga’.”
This parent’s child is autistic. Understandingly so, the pupil is a slow learner, the parent said.
During the release of the 2021 KCPE results, the KNEC Chief Executive Officer David Njegere appealed to all schools to register their learners, which is usually done via the KNEC portal.
He told Nation.Africa via phone that unless a school notifies KNEC, it is not able to know that a student is not registered for the examinations.
“Unless the school brings that to our attention, we cannot know” he said. “The schools can write to us, stating the reasons for late registration and we will act on it.”
