Kenya students struggle at home learning due to COVID-19 impact on education

by Mohamed Hassan – DevelopmentAid Journalist in Somalia

Nearly every aspect of normal life has been affected by the spread of the novel coronavirus otherwise referred to as COVID-19. The number of Covid-19 cases in Kenya as of the end of June has reached slightly below 6,200 with over 2,000 cases of recovery and almost 150 deaths. Businesses of all different sizes and industries of all different sorts have been impacted. In Kenya, the most significant sector affected by this pandemic apart from business is the educational sector.

Schools were temporarily closed since mid-March of this year, making it the longest period students have ever stayed away from learning in schools. Nearly 25 million students ranging from pre-primary school to Tertiary level are out of school unaware of when they will resume their learning. Moreover, the rules that were pertaining to social distancing made it impossible for private tutors to teach kids at home.

We came across Amina Mohamed, a form four student at Our Lady of Mercy Girls High school preparing for her final year exams at home in Starehe constituency within Nairobi, together with her brother in form three on the dining table.

“I was very motivated to prepare for my final year exams particularly during the second term, which happens to be the longest when compared to the other terms. I am lacking guidance on how I could cover the syllabus, meanwhile, the only person am currently relying on is my elder brother who finished high school two years ago.

Besides this problem, she pointed out other further challenges such as not having access to her books which are locked up at school. She left them behind hoping to come back and resume learning after two weeks as had been communicated by the school administration.

Parents are also worried by the long duration kids have been staying at home making the learning seem uncertain. We met Khadra Farah a mother of ten in Eastleigh, a small community, located some 50 km outside Nairobi, who noted that she was very vigilant and was following news from media outlets. However, to her disappointment, most of the news coverage are political in nature, particularly concerning the forthcoming election that will be held in 2022 whereas the COVID-19 coverage coming in second.

The government of Kenya, through the country’s Ministry of Education, reiterated that no schools would open until the virus is fully eradicated or brought under control. In a presentation by Nicholas Gathemia, the Kenya School Association (Kepsha) chairperson, it was shown that classrooms in public schools in specific areas such as Nairobi tend to be overcrowded with the number of students ranging from 70 to more than 100.

“It will not be possible to observe some of the social distancing measures unless more classrooms are added,” said Mr. Gathemia.

The Kepsha chairman also insisted that it would be prudent to put certain measures in place before schools are reopened such as the fumigation of the entire school building, the establishment of quarantine centers as well as the enlistment of parents and pupils regarding their duty to stay safe.

Teachers and students are currently trying to improvise, kids are taught on social media platforms such as through WhatsApp video calls, zoom and skype. However, this platform is not accessible to kids from humble backgrounds as well as those residing in remote locations due to lack of access to the internet.

Education is important in Africa as it provides the foundation for social well-being, skilled labor, economic growth, peace, and stability. Education will help better the continent’s position in adopting automation as well as its ability to adapt to the ever-growing field of science and technology. This would consequently attract foreign investment directly to the continent and also provide an enabling environment for multinational companies that wish to have a footprint in Africa.

In March 2020, the UNICEF office in Kenya received a Global Partnership for Education (GEP) grant of US$ 140,000 to support the efforts of the Ministry of Education in formulating a robust response to the coronavirus pandemic. GEP will also provide additional funding that will help to reinforce equity and promote high standards as well as efficiency in learning institutions.