Wednesday, August 21, 2024 - Education Principal Secretary Beatrice Inyangala had a rough time explaining the parameters the government relied on in the newly unveiled education funding model which has caused an uproar.
While appearing in the National
Assembly, the PS was put on the test to explain the funding after an uproar from
Kenyans, a majority of whom complained of ending up in bands 4 and
5 despite having less household income.
Over the last week, parents
complained that their children had been placed in a band where they are
expected to pay Ksh67,000 fees and above which falls in the top two bands.
Inyangala admitted that a
majority of the students landed in Band 4 or Band 5 since the high school
they attended was a classifying parameter and yet the majority attended national
schools where school fees topped Ksh53,000.
She further noted that the
University Fund relied on data entered by the students and noted that some, who
attended top schools under external help such as harambees were afraid to make
the declaration while making the applications.
"Without reliable data on
income, it is very difficult for us to use income precisely to predict for the
time being. However, I have data here from the National Examination Council for
the results of the students who are now joining University," she
explained.
"According to this data,
84.8 per cent of the students who scored C+ (plus) and above studied in
national schools. We can see that this admission is skewed towards national
schools."
"In these national schools,
students were paying Ksh53,000 minimum and we also know there are other levies.
Some of these students also studied in private schools," Inyangala added.
She further noted that despite
the flawed parameter, the affected students had failed to demonstrate that they
come from needy families hence making it difficult for the institution to
determine the correct cluster to classify them.
The Kenyan DAILY POST
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