11.0 EDUCATION AND TECHNICAL TRAINING
The current Government has in the last four years, to a large extent, guided the growth of education in Kenya. While some of the targets have been achieved, the education sector must consistently and continually address outstanding and emerging challenges through systematic planning that must embody participatory and consultative principles. In this regard, Kenya must strive towards becoming a reading and working nation whose own educated and skilled human resource is the bedrock for production and wealth creation.
The DP recognizes that Kenyans in the age bracket of 30 years and below constitute about 75% of the Country’s population; forming the largest source of human resource. It is imperative therefore that Government must play a major role in making the education sector responsive to skills need and training demand of our people.
Furthermore the DP will deliberately put in place systems aimed at gender mainstreaming in education; provide adequate training resources for marginalized areas and for persons who are mentally and physically challenged; meet the challenges of institutional governance; attain high student enrolment and improve the state of education infrastructure. Kenya must increase investment in education; be globally competitive in terms of education; and must be able to cope with dynamic demands, expectations and aspirations of Kenyans; and must be able to promote research and skills driven education and managing the National effect of brain drain.
The broad objective is to ensure every Kenyan has the right to quality lifelong education and training no matter his/her socio-economic status. The Democratic Party of Kenya Government will strive to attain the Millennium Development Goals; pursue appropriate educational policies and strategies that involve the harmonization of educational systems that take cognizance of the skills needs of an industrialized Country.
Successful implementation of such programmes shall be aimed at enhancing people’s capabilities, capacities and well being so that they are able to participate in Nation building. In order to further improve efficiency in our education system the DP Government will implement the following strategies:
1. Discourage early marriage of school going girls
2. Revise the current outdated Education Act of 1980 so that it is complementary with other Education Acts and the Children’s Act;
3. Increase the budget allocation to education;
4. Collaborate and cooperate with partners while being the primary coordinating education agent, at all levels with local authorities, churches, private sector, international agencies and stakeholders;
5. Put into place systems of monitoring, evaluation and marketing audits;
6. Adopt and utilize cost-effective strategies aimed at reducing burdening of households including harmonized school uniforms and text books in primary and secondary schools;
7. Nurture talents and create special units for the most talented students
8. Re-introduce the 7-4-2 curriculum of education
9. Introduce attitudinal courses in schools, that 80% of success is attitude and 20% skills
10. Strengthen the research divisions in the Ministry of Education that shall oversee educational and technological research, experimental education development, education and culture; fortified by proactive management systems that take cognizance of the role of educational sociologists and psychologists in developing appropriate curriculum in-ethnology, including inculcation of National core values that take cognizance of our diversity
11. Review the training of teachers for basic, technical and higher education aimed at producing “competent subject/discipline teachers” and lecturers that are adequately prepared in knowledge and skills for essential life long learning;
12. Review the roles of district and provincial education boards in the total quality management of schools and technical institutes;
13. Achieve universal primary education for all by 2020 as provided for in the Covenants of the Dakar forum;
14. Ensure transition rates of 80-90% from primary to secondary levels;
15. Enhance access, equity and quality through appropriate cost effective teacher training and restructure the Kenya Institute of Education
Harmonize physical facilities, instructional materials ,science equipment and laboratories, access to ICT technology and extracurricular facilities with special emphasis in Arid and Semi Arid Areas (ASALs) and urban slums;
16. Increase levels of adult literacy to 95 percent by year 2020; augmented by establishment of public libraries (one library per district headquarters) with special emphasis on both rural and urban areas;
17. Increase the number of technical institutes with appropriate physical facilities, equipment and funding. The target should be one per district to produce technicians and technologists for diversified industry in tandem with vision 2030;
18. Expand public universities with special emphasis on the science related courses and gender parity;
19. Develop appropriate learning linkage systems between the basic, secondary, tertiary institutions and universities and evolve appropriate certifications in consultation with Kenya National Examinations Council (KNEC) and Commission for Higher Education (CHE);
20. Evolve deliberate managed systems that link universities to industries for horning skills and knowledge, and utilization of research findings for National development;
21. Establish special schools for the talented students;
22. Establish district libraries;
23. Establish Teacher, Student and Parent Associations that will allow solving school problems in a consultative manner; and
24. Involve universities in National development programs with special emphasis in environment, water and natural resource management, agriculture and food security, infrastructure, health and poverty alleviation.
25. Provide sanitary towels to schools
11.1 Kenya Education Policy Research Institute
The DP Government will establish The Kenya Education Policy Research Institute (KEPRI) to undertake Policy Research on Education. The DP Government will create a board of directors to manage the Centre. The composition of the Board will include at least an ICT specialist, representatives of business, women, religious and trade union organizations, education specialists especially in the areas of technology development, sociology and psychology. The functions of the institute will be:
1. research into the future needs of the education sector
2. Provide active public debate for alternative educational options that transcend ethnicity, Regional and racial prejudice.
3. Scan the horizon for purposeful education and the need for centres of excellence
4. Generate successive and alternative images of future requirements of kind of jobs, professions and vocations for the next 20-30 years.
5. Rationalize curriculum to reflect future education demands.
6. Provide information on the kind of ethical and moral challenges that shall face the nation.
7. Define and develop the kind of technology including ICT that is likely to be beneficial to the nation.
8. Develop more cost effective organizational structures in the Ministry of Education.
9. Define, systematize and update information for evolving and developing cognitive and affective skills that shall accommodate future demands in education.
10. Make use of mentors who will not only transmit skills and knowledge but would also show how text book knowledge is applied in life by experienced professionals including accountants, doctors, nurses ,engineers, lawyers, and economists who shall become part of “outside faculty”
11. Evolve and develop educational programmes that cultivate strong character (high self esteem) and integrity, critical thinking, leadership skills and desire to learn, achieve and succeed.
12. Promote a reading culture by establishing at least one library in each divisional headquarters in addition to promoting mobile libraries.
13. Make the institute the focal point for quality assurance and standards