Why Parents Want Government To Suspend CBC

Following the demands that parents presented to President William Ruto, there has been a rise in the number of people advocating for the suspension of the Competency-Based Curriculum, CBC.

Parents opined that the new curriculum had no clear structures, indicating that it needed an overhaul before being reintroduced.

According to Bernard Wafula, a parent in Bungoma county expressed that there was a disconnect between education stakeholders, adding that it would hinder the implementation of the curriculum.

“The curriculum was forced on parents, teachers, and learners by the government, but I believe it can work if rolled out smoothly with all stakeholders on board,” he stated.

The demands of the parents were also supported by a number of the teachers, who were of the opinion that an early suspension would assist the government in finding other options.

Patrick Were, secretary of the Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) Homa Bay branch, emphasized that if improvements were not implemented soon, pupils would suffer more.

“We are glad that Ruto’s government has given us an opportunity, to tell the truth about this curriculum.  Our position is that the CBC should be suspended as soon as possible until Ruto decides whether to scrap it or continue” Were complained that in its current form, the system was harmful to educators, parents, and students.

The CBC is set to replace the 8-4-4 curriculum in a phased plan but it has faced a myriad of challenges since its introduction in January 2017. Among the interventions, parents want to be prioritized by the task force is the retraining of teachers on how best to handle the new system of instruction.

“From our side, CBC is a good thing and we support it. But the implementation part of it is what has caused problems,” Parents Association chairperson Nicholas Maiyo said.

He said parents find the new curriculum too expensive likely because teachers may have made it that way for lack of a better understanding of how it works.

“It’s like teachers are interpreting it wrongly. Parents are complaining it’s expensive because they are being told to do this, go download that,” he said.

The CBC task force is currently transversing the country to collect views on the curriculum introduced by former President Uhuru Kenyatta’s administration. With calls for the suspension of the curriculum, there was lingering uncertainty over the Grade Six examinations scheduled for mid-November 2022.

Candidates are also set to sit national exams from November to December 2022. The task force led by Professor Raphael Munavu was scheduled to submit its final report with recommendations to Ruto in March 2023. However, it was also expected to update Ruto on its progress after every two months.

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