<p><strong>2020 KCSE &; KCPE EXAMS CANCELLED: EDUCATION BREAKING NEWS</strong></p>
<p><strong>There will be no national exams for candidates in the year 2020.</strong></p>
<p>This follows CS Magoha&#8217;s announcement today at the KICD offices at a press briefing on the reopening of schools and the new school calendar for the year 2020.</p>
<p>This, therefore, means that all candidates who had registered with the Kenya National Examinations Council, KNEC to sit for the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education, KCSE, and the Kenya Certificate of Primary Education, KCPE will have to repeat classes when learning resumes in January 2021.</p>
<p>The decision was arrived at after several consultations involving key education stakeholders and representatives from the Ministry of Health.</p>
<p><strong>2020 SCHOOL CALENDAR/ACADEMIC YEAR</strong></p>
<p>CS Magoha also said that the 2020 school calendar has been written off following the unprecedented spike in the number of coronavirus cases in the country.</p>
<p>Present at the press briefing were union officials led by KNUT Secretary General Wilson Sossion, KUPPET Secretary General Akello Misori, TSC CEO Dr. Nancy Macharia, and the Kenya Parents Association Boss Nicholas Maiyo.</p>
<p>All the afore-mentioned stakeholders were given a chance to express their opinions on the matter before the CS addressed the nation.</p>
<p>The stakeholders backed the education ministry&#8217;s move to extend the schools&#8217; reopening date until January 2021, when the covid-19 curve would have flattened.</p>
<p>TVET institutions and colleges were however allowed to reopen in September but they will have to strictly adhere to the given guidelines first.</p>
<p>&#8220;All institutions allowed to reopen must comply with covid-19 regulations or risk closure,&#8221; said the CS.</p>
<p><strong>INTERNATIONAL SCHOOLS</strong></p>
<p>The new school calendar applies to international and private schools too.</p>
<p>Most international schools have been facilitating online classes for their learners through Zoom and Google classrooms with the hope that schools will reopen soon.</p>
<p>This has been a source of conflict between the schools and parents who feel that they should not meet the cost of online learning.</p>
<p>Now that the CS has announced a new academic calendar for schools offering international curriculum, the schools and parents will have to reach a middle ground in as far as the payment of school fees is concerned.</p>
<p><strong>NANCY MACHARIA&#8217;S FIRST SPEECH</strong></p>
<p><strong>The newly reappointed TSC CEO Dr. Nancy Macharia was also given a chance to speak today on behalf of the Teachers Service Commission.</strong></p>
<p>The CEO appreciated the crucial roles played by teachers in the education sector.</p>
<p>She thanked them for their continued support in ensuring that learners access content virtually.</p>
<p>She further insisted that the Commission is concerned about the safety of both learners and teachers.</p>
<p>Dr. Macharia categorically stated that there is no way the Commission can allow teachers to resume duty before proper psychological preparation.</p>
<p>Besides, teachers who have clocked 58 and those with underlying medical conditions such as diabetes who are classified as vulnerable will have to be taken care of before schools reopen.</p>
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