KNUT Urges the Government to Domicile Junior Secondary Schools in Primary Schools

By Lydia Gichuki

The Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) is now pushing the government to domicile junior secondary schools in primary schools.

This call was made by KNUT Secretary General Collins Oyuu citing that the infrastructure in primary schools can comfortably host junior secondary without putting too much pressure on parents and Kenyans to put up new structures.

He added that it is unrealistic to squeeze pupils from 30,000 primary schools in 10,000 classrooms.

The government is constructing 10,000 CBC classrooms in secondary schools across the country in readiness for the transition of the first cohort of grade six learners into junior secondary school.

In addition to this, private schools are expected to build an additional 5,000 classrooms to aid in the smooth transition of the pupil come January 2023.

Among other concerns is the fact that the country will experience double intake in secondary schools as class eight and grade six pupils will be admitted to secondary schools at the same time in January 2023.

With this, the resources in secondary schools are expected to be strained and might burst their seams.

For these reasons, Oyuu should consider renaming the two years junior secondary schools as senior primary and have students occupy the existing class seven and eight classes.

What’s more, he said some of the primary school teachers have degrees, Masters and Ph.D. degrees, and can effectively handle these classes.

While addressing teachers at a KNUT conference in Siaya last week he urged politicians to stop politicizing the matter as it involves the lives of children.

Oyuu urged the next government to employ more teachers as the workforce will be greatly stretched as there will be double intake for secondary school and still as it stands there is a 114,000 teachers deficit.