Government lowers TVET entry requirements after exam shock

Kenya’s Ministry of Education has taken measures to deal with the results of the 2023 Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) in which 48,174 (5.33%) of students obtained the mean grade E – the largest number of students with this grade ever recorded in the history of the KCSE exam.

According to the ministry, entry requirements for technical and vocational education and training (TVET) colleges will be lowered from a D- to an E to allow the students to continue their education. The requirement for a student to join a university in Kenya is a C+ result in the KCSE.

For a long time, anyone who scored any grade below the set standards was considered as a failure by society and unable to join any higher education institution.

Most of these students would usually go back and redo their secondary school education for a chance at redeeming themselves, while others have been known to drop out and give up on education altogether.

The new government that took office last year has directed the ministry of education to ensure that all students who scored Es get to join TVETS and take up craft courses in an effort to see that everyone gets what the government terms as a ‘return on investment’.

In an interview with the Daily Nation, the principal education secretary, Dr Richard Belio Kipsang, said that the government spends 30% or KES650 billion (about US$4 billion) of its annual budget on education and it was only right that students and parents were able to enjoy the benefits of the same investments.

Skills and success

“I am a firm believer that not everyone was meant to be book smart, and that poor grades should not hinder a person’s ability to succeed in life,” said Samuel Asiago, a lecturer at the Kisumu National Polytechnic (KNP).

“I support the government’s decision to ensure every high school graduate gets to enrol at a higher education institution and, being a trainer at a TVET, I have seen first-hand the wonders it has done for those who embraced it,” Asiago told University World News.

“As a trainer at KNP, I get to handle students looking to learn various skills in the job market that need hands-on application, which most of our students are excellent at. I know of a student who graduated from here seven years ago and now owns a bespoke suit-making company in which he has employed a number of workers.

“Another I personally tutored now runs a small stone building block-making company and is making millions from it. All these were students who came in with Ds and were seen as failures by their peers who made it to universities,” Asiago explained.

“When you get to sit down and really understand these students, as is the case with TVETS, you will realise that most of them are good at doing things physically rather than answering questions on paper.

“They may not be able to solve complex mathematics on the board, but will remember how to properly assemble a machine, mix the right amount of cement, or weld the perfect joint – all by watching and learning, which is not the case in most of our learning institutions,” he added.

Probing the poor performance

The education authority directed all education stakeholders to standardise their school visitation programmes for observation and also provide extra support to teachers on curriculum delivery and assessment in an effort to prevent a repeat of the poor performance.

During the announcement of the KCSE results, the education cabinet secretary, Ezekiel Machogu, also instructed the director of quality assurance to conduct an investigation that is expected to find out the reason for the poor performance.

“As a nation, we must start interrogating data and evidence to make critical decisions that would ensure we realise our return on investment from all resources that the government puts into the education sector,” Machogu said.

“I believe that everyone has some basic skill or talent that can be used in society and we only need to help them bring it to light. I also believe that it is easier for one to learn things practically, which makes TVETs the perfect place for the 48,174 students to come and learn a useful craft,” Asiago concluded.