LAPTOPS VERSUS THE ROUGH KENYAN EDUCATION TERRAIN

The Free Primary Education (FKE) introduced by former President Mwai Kibaki, upon his assumption to power in 2002, was indeed a milestone in the Kenyan education sector. Children from unfortunate families, who could not afford the monetary value of primary education, could now afford it. Kimani Maruge, the octogenarian from Rift Valley, too went back to school to get what he had only heard of and imagined. Never mind that he was 86 years, arguably the sunset years of his life. Yet he had decided to go back and get what he should have done I his early childhood. This just shows you what it means when the wise minds say that education is the key to life! Sadly, Maruge passed on before he could fully realize his education. But not before he had walked into the Guiness Records as the world’s oldest pupil, and some trips to the United States of America! The man had attained worldwide recognition and a movie blasted the walls of Hollywood, all in his name. Rest in eternal peace, Mr. Maruge.

However, despite all the positives that we realized as a nation due to FKE should not blind us from the bitter facts, especially faced by our brothers and sisters in the marginalized regions of this country. Inadequate teaching staff, lack of decent classrooms for these young minds to learn uninterrupted, and a general lack of all the basics best characterizes the Free Primary Education. Pupils lack enough desks, others sit on stones under trees to escape the scorching sun. Accessing the free education is a challenge to most children in these marginalized regions. Yet as a nation, we have all along turned a blind eye to the predicament of these young Kenyans. Free primary education is not free passé; many children have been forced to pay in many ways.

The laptops puzzle is here with us now. An election pledge by the Jubilee government in the run up to the last General Elections, this ambitious plan has elicited all manner of reactions. But mainly the nation is divided along two schools of thought here; one, that laptops are not a priority as of now and two, that our kids need to embrace technology from the earliest age possible.

But, let us examine the real situation with regard to primary education in the country. We have pupils in the rural areas and the marginalized regions whose access to this invaluable commodity is a daily struggle, laden with all manner of seemingly insurmountable challenges. Many lack, desks and chairs to sit on and learn, teachers are few in numbers and pose a serious deficiency, classroom walls have tumbled due to the harsh weather, pupils go to school on empty stomach, lack clean water to drink, there are no adequate text books for the pupils and worse still, others trek to and fro for at least 15 kilometers daily, in search of this basic education. In some parts of the Northern Frontier, insecurity, mainly in the form of clan reprisals, cattle rustling and terror attacks, pupils can no longer go to school. And now, due to the countrywide teachers’ strike, pupils in public primary schools are stuck at home, praying that the government and the teachers strike a compromise and normalcy returns. 

These are the challenges faced by the ordinary Kenyan pupil, who is not fortunate to see the walls of private primary schools or the not -so -good facilities in public schools in urban and some rural settings. The nightmare that he wishes away so quickly, the hardships that he prays for a miracle to take away! These are what the Jubilee government should focus on solving, in order to ensure quality free primary education. The free primary education is laden with worlds-apart disparities. Let us solve this then become rightfully ambitious and set up Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Centres across the country’s 47 counties. We do not even need to give laptops to each pupil in the country. We should again be realistic and dream sustainable dreams! The laptop per pupil dream best remains a dream!

Meanwhile, Wilson Sossion and his entire teachers’ workforce have stayed put and it might take serious government efforts to get them back to class. The hide and seek game that Labour secretary, Kambi Kazungu and his education counterpart Jacob Kaimenyi have been engaging the teachers in for the past week, can never solve the strike issue. Issuing ultimatums and legal action against the teachers will even make the situation even more unpalatable.