Pioneer learners under the Competency Based Curriculum (CBC) will sit their final exam in December before transiting to junior secondary in grade 7 next year.
The Grade 6 learners will sit a national assessment test which will be known as Kenya Primary School Education Assessment (KPSEA).
Already the tests have been printed and will be administered in December this year according to Education CS Prof. George Magoha.
The new exam, KPSEA, will be administered under the Competence Based Curriculum (CBC) and will replace the Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE).
However unlike in the 8-4-4 system, in this assessment there will be no multiple choices.
The KPSEA exam will carry a maximum weight of 40 marks. This will be added to other assessments which the learners did in Grade 3, 4 and 5.
The assessments in Grade 3, 4, and 5 each was marked out of 20 marks when combined it adds to a total of 60 marks. This total is what will be added to the 40 marks in KPSEA exam to give 100 marks.
This means that assessments in each grade count in the pupil’s final score, unlike the 8-4-4 system where pupils were graded only after sitting for KCPE exams.
The Ministry of Education have warned parents that they will not be able to transfer their Grade 6 children once they are registered for this exam.
Registration for the Grade 6 exams together with KCPE and KCSE will started this week and will end on 14th May according to a circular by Knec.
Magoha has warned school heads against charging parents for registration of Grade 6, KCPE and KCSE exams.
He said sh 5 billion has been set aside by the government this year for managing those examinations.
“The government has set aside Sh5 billion for this exercise. I want to warn teachers failure to register a student, for whatever reason, is a criminal offence. Further, no one should demand any money to register the students,” Magoha said.
Knec will also train teachers for the national marking exercise of the Grade 6 KPSEA exams.
According to Knec chair John Onsati, Grade 6 exams will be done in November and December this year.
“We want to inform Teachers Service Commission (TSC) that KNEC will be administering the Kenya Primary Education Assessment Grade 6 summative assessment at the end of the year,” said Onsati during the release of the KCSE 2021 results.
Grade six learners will transition to junior secondary at Grade 7 in January next year after sitting their final assessment test.
Below are core and optional subjects learners will study in Grade 7, 8 and 9.
Core Subjects
- English
- Kiswahili or Kenyan Sign Language for learners who are deaf
- Mathematics
- Integrated Science
- Health Education
- Pre-Technical and Pre-Career Education
- Social Studies
- Religious Education – learners choose one of the following:
- Christian Religious Education
- Islamic Religious Education
- Hindu Religious Education
- Business Studies 1
- Agriculture
- Life Skills Education
- Sports and Physical Education
Optional Subjects (Minimum 1, Maximum 2)
- Visual Arts
- Performing Arts
- Home Science
- Computer Science
- Foreign Languages:
- German
- French
- Mandarin
- Arabic
- Indigenous Languages
- Kenyan Sign Language
NB: ICT will be a delivery tool for all Subjects