The pandemic has deepened the long-running crisis in global education. Many children around the world missed the majority of the last academic year. At the height of school closures, 1.6 billion children and young people were out of education. Girls have been among the hardest hit. When they are not enrolled in school they are more likely to be forced into child marriage, subjected to female genital mutilation and exposed to gender-based.
THE STANDARD By
Augustine Oduor |
February 1st 2021 at 12:05:00 GMT +0300
The Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut) Secretary general Wilson Sosion addresses teachers after overseeing Nakuru county KNUT elections at Afraha High school in Nakuru on January 30, 2021.[Kipsang Joseph, Standard]
Schools are facing a serious dilemma on how to discipline learners, as teachers and parents reject the use of the cane to punish errant students.
Opinion remains divided on the proposal by the Ministry of Education to reintroduce the cane banned in 2001, as some stakeholders say it may be the magic stick to restore good manners in schools.
Education Cabinet Secretary George Magoha last week hinted at a possible move to bring back the cane as cases of indiscipline increased in schools.
THE STANDARD
EDUCATION
Pupils in class at Oloolua Primary School in Ngong Town on Thursday, Jan 7, 2020. [Jonah Onyango, Standard] Covid 19 Time Series
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Kneedler assumes office of US Ambassador to Kenya
Eric Kneedler becomes Chargé d’Affaires ad interim, at the US Embassy in Nairobi effective January 20, 2021; he replaces Kyle McCarter who resigned.
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Exodus to rural schools as Covid saps incomes
Tuesday January 19 2021
Children and parents queue at Concordia Primary School in Mombasa to seek admission on January 4, 2021. FILE PHOTO | NMG
By ELIZABETH KIVUVA
Summary
The Covid-19 economic crisis has put many families across the country in a fix, forcing them to make hard choices, if only to stay afloat.
Arguably, none has been as tough as the choice of school for the thousands of parents who have had to drastically cut their expenditure in the face of shrinking income sources.
The hole dug by the health pandemic on many a parent’s pockets was evident when schools reopened on January 4 with most seeking to transfer their children from private to public institutions.