Rise of grade ‘E’ in national and private schools sparks concern

Concern is growing over the high number of students in coveted national and private schools who are scoring grade E, with thousands more failing to attain the minimum university entry grade.

Shocking details have also emerged regarding the high number of students in private schools, most of which boast better facilities and adequate teachers, who still fail to attain the C plus university entry grade despite the significant investment made by parents.

National schools admit the crème de la crème of Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) candidates, most of whom score 400 marks and above, and the fees paid by parents in these institutions are also the highest.

National schools do not admit students with marks below 400, except in a few cases involving affirmative action. Even in such cases, only those with more than 380 marks are considered.

READ: We scored ‘E’ in KCSE, but we still want to have a bright future

Compared to Extra County, County, and Sub-County schools, these institutions, often better equipped and well-staffed, have over the years been the subject of major competition among parents and students during Form One admissions.

In 2011, a policy decision was made to increase the number of national schools from the traditional 18 to 105 in order to expand access and improve transition.

However, an analysis by Sunday Standard of national school results from four years (2019, 2020, 2023, and 2024) reveals a stark contrast, with thousands failing to meet the university cut-off mark despite their high entry grades. Data for 2021 and 2022 was unavailable for analysis.

The Sunday Standard analysis established that despite the high entry requirements and substantial investments in these schools, between 2019 and 2024, approximately 700 students scored grade E in national schools.

Over the same period, 27,552 candidates from national schools scored grade C or below, meaning they failed to attain the university entry mark.

This number could be higher, as it excludes data from 2021 and 2022, during which the Kenya National Examination Council (KNEC) did not release the statistics under the tenure of late Education Cabinet Secretary George Magoha.

READ: Shock of 700,000 students who missed university entry mark

In 2019, 9,241 candidates from national schools scored below C+, with 338 scoring an E, the lowest KCSE grade. This trend continued in 2020, when 141 students scored E, and 6,118 failed to make the university cut-off.

In 2023, 5,283 candidates failed to qualify for university, though only two scored E.

The number of E grades increased again in 2024, with 161 students scoring E, and 6,910 failing to meet the university cut-off.

In private schools, the analysis reveals that over the four years reviewed, 27,552 students scored grade E, the lowest KCSE grade.

During the same period, a total of 196,692 candidates scored grade C or below, meaning they also failed to meet the university entry grade in private schools.

Breaking it down, in 2019, 56,277 candidates from private schools scored between C (Plain) and E, with 9,241 attaining an E.

In 2020, 6,118 private school candidates scored grade E, and 53,829 failed to make the university cut-off.

By 2023, 45,293 candidates scored between C and E, including 5,283 who attained an E.

The number of E grades in private schools increased in 2024 to 6,910, with 41,573 candidates failing to make the university cut-off.

What is raising concern, however, is that despite national schools receiving significant resources and selecting the cream of the top-performing students, many learners fail to sustain their primary school success.

David Kariuki, the Principal of Merishaw Secondary School, which emerged top in the 2024 KCSE, and a former head of Alliance High School, explains that the low scores among high achievers in the KCSE examination could be due to a combination of issues.

Partly, he says, many candidates in national schools come from private schools where teaching and learning are more personalised, and more attention is given to each learner.

This, he says, is not the case in public schools, where class sizes are larger, leading to reduced teacher contact.

“It is not surprising to find low grades in national schools because students are coming from environments where they are spoon-fed to a new setting where they don’t have close contact with teachers,” Kariuki said.

He added: “I suggest that parents who send their children to private primary schools should also consider private secondary schools and possibly private universities.”

Kariuki also explained that there could be a lack of parental engagement after students are admitted to national schools.

“Some think that once their child is admitted to a national school, they can sit back and expect an A. That is not true. There are also other factors related to the student and school culture,” said Kariuki.

Dr Peter Njagi, a clinical psychologist and former head of Mathari Hospital, also explained that the change in environment could affect student performance.

Njagi states that the change in environment could lead to depression, which, in turn, affects their academic performance.

“Some students come from homes where they have a buffet for breakfast, and subjecting them to a situation where they now only have porridge and cold showers could push them into depression and lead to withdrawal from academic interests,” Njagi said.

A principal from a top national school told Sunday Standard that low scores could be attributed to skewed admissions, where some low-performing candidates make their way into national schools through backdoor means.

This, he said, leaves the student as an academic outlier, likely to be left behind in their studies.

“Over time, you’ll find they are seriously lagging behind, and this could be reflected in their KCSE results,” the school head said.

ALSO READ: What next after scoring E? Low grades are not a ‘death sentence’

Susan Gitau, a counselling psychologist, said some students could perform poorly due to school environment, peer pressure, or weak brain development caused by childhood trauma.

“Conflicts at home or school can also affect students’ performance, as they may become depressed. Those who were treated warmly at home might feel isolated when they suddenly no longer get that attention,” said Dr Gitau, who is also head of clinical practice at African Nazarene University’s Department of Counselling Psychology.

Former Kenya Secondary School Heads Association (KESSHA) National Chairman Kahi Indimuli said not all students admitted to national schools score high grades.

“Some are there because of affirmative action and policies that favour the distribution of candidates from across the country so that the schools have a national outlook. Such students have a hard time fitting in,” said Indimuli.

He also said that recently upgraded national schools are struggling with good grades because they are overcrowded and have a poor student-teacher ratio.

“They also lack adequate resources, such as libraries and laboratories, which could reflect in examination results,” he said.

Some students are also forced to repeat Class Eight to achieve better scores, which send them to national schools.

“But they struggle to catch up and achieve good results once admitted to these institutions,” said Indimuli.

For private schools, the expectation is that parents opt for private schools because of the facilities, adequate staffing, and less congestion, creating an environment conducive to good performance.

This is in stark contrast to public schools, which are often overcrowded, poorly staffed, and lacking the necessary facilities to support better learning.

What is shocking is the high cost parents pay in these private schools, resulting in poor grades that fail to meet even the university entry requirements.