SCHOOLS RANKING Govt abolishes student and school ranking on exam performance The ranking of schools in national examinations has been banned to eliminate cut-throat competition among institutions. Form Four and Standard Eight candidates will also not be ranked on the basis of their scores. The new rules come into effect with those who sat the exams this year. The new policy is expected to end unethical practices by teachers in the rush for top positions. Form One selection will now be determined by quotas, performance, affirmative action and the candidates’ school choices, according to a circular sent to schools this week. This effectively means that candidates from public primary schools will secure more places in the national and top county schools compared to those from private schools. “Ranking of schools and students on the basis of national examination results, therefore, is discontinued with immediate effect,” says Education Principal Secretary Bellio Kipsang in the circular copied to county and district education officials. However, the circular does not prescribe an alternative criteria to be used in gauging performance of schools and their candidates. It only spells out a raft of new guidelines and regulations aimed at improving school management and lowering learning costs. The directive brings to an end a tradition in which national exams have been used as the only tool for grading schools. The ranking method has been cited as a leading cause of unethical routine by some schools where bright candidates are registered in different streams from the rest to maintain top slots in the national list Some schools have also been forcing weak learners to repeat classes while registering the weak ones in satellite schools. t.co/5030r2IYWv
Posted on: Sat, 29 Nov 2014 06:07:19 +0000