The Cabinet Secretary in charge of Education Ezekiel Machogu has broken his long overdue silence on the form one selection 2023.
In an interview with the Sunday Nation, CS Machogu confirmed that the 2023 form one selection will be fair since the process is computerized.
“Form One selection is computerized. That is what we used,” Education Cabinet Secretary Ezekiel Machogu told the Sunday Nation.
Since there are no changes in the form one placement criteria, it simply means that the top ten KCPE scorers from each sub-county (five girls and five boys) will get direct tickets to national schools of their own choice. The tentative reporting date is on January 30, 2023.
Since Kenya has got 290 sub-counties, 2, 900 learners will be selected to join their preferred schools.
The rest of the candidates will be subjected to other placement parameters that encompass equity, choice, and KCPE merit.
Form One Selection to National Schools in 2023
The scramble for the limited slots in both traditional and newly elevated national schools is still on.
A section of parents whose learners enrolled for KCPE in private schools has expressed anxiety since their children have been discriminated against in the past. National Parents Association Chairman, Silas Obuhatsa, called for transparency and accountability in the selection.
“We call for fairness in the selection that is solely conducted by the Ministry of Education. Children should be given a chance to join schools of their choice. Parents need to be involved in the exercise in future,” Mr Obuhatsa said.
“Children are equal. Any child who scored marks to join such a school should not be denied the opportunity. Parents are also equal. There are no private or public parents,” he added.
On the contrary, KUPPET secretary general Akelo Misori vouched for the computerized system saying it has been fair.
“An example is where more than 100,000 children selected a school that can only accommodate 600. Even if they all qualify to join the school, they cannot be admitted. The computer system, however, places them where services of the same nature can be provided,” he said.
Mr. Misori in a bid to calm the tension noted that learning institutions are similar but due to stability and perceived good performance, some gain popularity among children and their parents.
Form One Selection Process
- Total number of secondary schools a candidate selects=11 schools
- National schools=4 (one from each of the four clusters-C1, C2,C3 & special needs, SNE)
- Extra-county schools=3
- County Schools=2
- Sub-County Schools=2
For extra-county schools, the ministry uses a 15:35:50 ratio, with the host sub-county getting 15 per cent of the places, the county getting 35 per cent while candidates from other regions get 50 per cent.
Number of Secondary Schools in Kenya per Category
- National schools=112
- Extra-county schools=776
- County=1, 301
- Sub-county=6,297
- Private Schools=1,301
- Public boarding secondary schools=1,803
- Private boarding secondary schools=479
- Public day secondary schools=5,029
- Private day secondary schools=432
- Mixed day and boarding public secondary schools=2,245
- Mixed day and boarding private secondary schools=390
Inmates, overage candidates and those in refugee camps will not be placed in secondary schools.
Some national schools have already pre-selected their learners.