NAIROBI, Kenya, Apr 24 – Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba has clarified that Mathematics will remain compulsory in primary and secondary schools.
According to Ogamba, this followed extensive consultations with stakeholders where the proposal to make it optional was dropped.
He however indicated that arts students will learn a simplified version of Mathematics.
“The majority of stakeholders during the CBC dialogue were of the view that mathematics should be compulsory in senior school. We have listened to your concerns, consulted with the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD), and resolved that some form of mathematics be made compulsory for the two pathways that are not STEM,” he stated.
There had been an outcry over the proposal to have Mathematics designated n optional subject with the Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) arguing that such a move would undermine the nation’s workforce development and educational standards.
This comes after the Ministry of Education recently announced that Maths will no longer be compulsory for senior secondary learners under the Competency Based Curriculum (CBC), marking a drastic shift from the phased out 8-4-4 system.
In the system, students would have taken four compulsory subjects, namely English or Kenya Sign Language, Kiswahili, Physical Education, and Community Service Learning.
They would then have chosen three other subjects from a pool of 38 options.
