How to check form one selection 2016 via SMS and Online:

• To check the secondary school you have been admitted to online, go to this  Website:  http://www.education.go.ke/ and enter your Index number.
• To check the secondary school you have been admitted to via SMS,  send an SMS with your Index Number to 20042 from any network.

All the 7,000-plus candidates who scored more than 400 marks in last year’s Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) exams were placed in national schools of their choice irrespective of whether they attended public or private schools.

This was a remarkable departure from last year, when the exercise was muddied by a perverted quota system that ended up practically locking out the bulk of top private schools candidates from national and best county schools.
Whereas there is reason to ensure equity in admission, this should not be done at the expense of merit.
Overall, some 759,603 candidates out of the 925,744 eligible KCPE candidates will get admission, representing 82 per cent of the cohort.

Education Principal Secretary Belio Kipsang wrote to county directors of education and secondary school heads and said that selection would be on merit, equity and choice of schools.

Dr Kipsang said five top boys and girls in every sub-county would be placed in national schools of their choice.

“However, the top three will be selected first across all sub-counties and then the remaining two according to their marks because there are areas with very few students hence the equity requirement,” the Education PS said. 

In terms of transition, this is a major leap and ranks among the best in the region and compares favourably with the best cases in other parts of the world.

But the challenge remains for about 170,000 who may not get admission.
Although conventional argument would be that they should join youth and vocational training institutions, it is doubtful if that is the best option, given their tender age and the fact that not all may have the aptitude for it.


This calls for robust debate on critical pathways for learners, including exploring possibilities of establishing talent academies to take care of those with innate gifts but are not academically inclined.
Given the positive changes realised in this year’s Form One admission, Education Ministry must now focus on other critical areas like curriculum and management of schools to guarantee quality teaching and learning.

Source: Nation Newspaper