“We continue to look to the West for products and technologies that are both foreign and less appropriate to our needs. It is therefore imperative for our higher learning and research institutions to apply innovative research methods to existing products and technologies. Only aggressive and drastic steps towards these directions will allow Kenya and the rest of Africa to leap frog into industrialization and development,” said Professor George Saitoti, Kenya’s Minister of Science and Technology, while addressing an annual Scientific, Technological, and Industrialization Conference at Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology, recently.

Science and technical subjects have been taught in Kenyan schools since the colonial era. The British, who were colonial masters, practiced open segregation by putting in place three different categories of schools. Few resources were invested in teaching of science subjects in African schools.

Under this system, at the helm were schools for whites, which received more government funding. Students in these schools were molded to be future professionals in all disciplines. Second in rank came Asian schools where priority was given to technical subjects, and at the bottom were schools for African children. Pupils in the African schools were taught a little arithmetic, reading, and writing as well as vocational training so that they could fill clerical cadres and work as artisans.

The halfhearted focus on sciences was exacerbated when the country received its independence in 1963. Despite the acute shortages of scientists and highly skilled technicians, personnel in the civil services were needed immediately after independence. Thus, many Kenyans pursuing education both locally and abroad opted for humanities instead of science and technical courses.

Although post-independence policy makers appreciated the need of enhancing the teaching of science and technical subjects, and this was reflected in a new curriculum designed after independence, only few schools had the capacity to offer them. Those with the capacity to do so were mostly urban schools that were previously meant for the white and Asian students, and as a result of abolishing segregation in education the doors opened for African students.

Lack of enough well-trained science teachers in the country also worsened the situation. Thus, in the mid 1970s the number of students taking science and technical subjects at secondary level were still low.

The government urged parents to establish more schools both at primary and secondary levels and increased the number of colleges offering training to teachers. Currently there are two middle level colleges exclusively training teachers to teach science subjects.

Public universities were meant to offer more opportunities for students who wanted to take science subjects, yet, this was not fulfilled and most of the universities enrolled students for social sciences and humanities. Further still, the majority of private universities steered clear of offering science courses because of the huge resources required in this area. In the teaching of technical subjects, national polytechnics were established in major cities across the country, but their capacities have been outstretched.

The government, through the Ministry of Technical Training, encouraged the establishment of village polytechnics in rural areas, but decades later many of them have become decrepit, owing to the lack of facilities and instructors. It was believed that the polytechnics would promote the growth of cottage industries in rural areas. A limitation faced by these village polytechnics is continued use of outdated syllabuses and obsolete training equipment.

In the mid 1980s the Kenyan government introduced a new school curriculum overhauling the old educational system. Instead of pupils spending seven years at primary school level, six at secondary level, and three at university, they were now to spend eight years at primary level, four at secondary and another four at university under what is dubbed as 8-4-4 system of education.

The new system, which is still in use, emphasized practical teaching of both science and technical subjects. The post-independence curriculum witnessed the introduction of various technical subjects, with the reformists stressing on making the teaching of sciences compulsory at secondary level.

The aim was to produce a caliber of school graduates who could utilize the available resources and create jobs for themselves amid growing unemployment.

But the government, which was implementing structural adjustment programs, requested by the International Monetary Fund, IMF, could not manage to finance hiring of enough teachers and providing the required physical facilities.

Many schools lacked well equipped laboratories and workshops, while others had none at all, thus the burden was placed on the shoulders of parents and communities under what was termed as the cost sharing program.

The aim of this program was that the government paid the teachers’ salaries, while parents provided physical facilities.

This created discrepancies as some areas are less capable than others. Students in schools where parents could not afford to put up the required physical facilities, which were many, faired badly in national examinations.

It has now been twenty years since the 8-4-4 system of education was introduced. As a result of complaints from stakeholders that subjects were too many—students were taking as much as seven examinable subjects at primary level and over ten at secondary level; there have been several adjustments which has reduced the number of subjects drastically over the years.

The government did remove technical subjects from both the primary and secondary school syllabuses two years ago but has recently rescinded this move and will reintroduce them next year.

Mixed reactions have been voiced by employers over the quality of graduates of science studies from Kenyan schools and universities. Some industrialists claim that they do not fit well into the labor force while others say that they are competent.

All in all, these graduates continue to feed the labor market locally and some have secured employment in neighboring countries and abroad. Countries like Botswana and Rwanda have offered employment for Kenyan graduate science teachers, given that the Kenyan government can not hire many of them due to financial constraints.

Others are expected to take up jobs in Southern Sudan as peace returns to that country.

“Periodic changes of the syllabuses for science subjects and mathematics has consistently improved the quality of courses offered at all levels of education,” said Dalmas Achong’a, a Kenyan high school mathematics teacher.

Universities and polytechnics also do liaise with the Federation of Kenyan Employers (FKE), to secure internships for their students doing science and technology courses so that they can be exposed to the practical aspects of their professions.

The new government that came into power in 2002 introduced free primary education, but this was not matched with a corresponding expansion of available facilities and increase in the number of teachers.

As a result, teachers were unable to cope with the large number of students. Consequently, close monitoring of pupils’ progress in science subjects and mathematics was difficult.

“Most pupils require extra attention in mathematics but sometimes we handle a class of over 80 pupils. It is even difficult to mark all their exercise books and monitor their progress,” points out John Ouma, a teacher in a public primary school in Mathare slums, Nairobi city.

He said that pupils perceive mathematics as an abstract and theoretical subject; therefore to make them enjoy learning it, a manageable class is necessary.

The government of Kenya dedicated the highest share to the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology in its annual budget, but this has not solved the perennial shortage of teachers.

Science and technical subjects are the worse hit due to the fact that many of those interested in taking up a teaching career do not prefer specializing in science subjects, because only a few of those who complete their studies are offered employment by the government.

In relation to policy and regulatory frame work, Kenya is amongst the few countries in Africa that have established regional mathematics and science associations to strengthen networking and collaboration, and to exchange experiences related to teaching science and mathematics.

But the country still grapples with improving performance in science subjects and mathematics at both primary and secondary school level.

To this end, the Ministry of Education has formed partnerships with other stakeholders to address the issue. For instance in 2003, a seven million US Dollar program to improve the teaching of mathematics and science in African secondary schools was launched in the country with funding provided by Japan International Cooperation Agency, JICA.

The initiative referred to as Strengthening of Mathematics and Science in Secondary Schools, (SMASSE) intends to train over 3,500 teachers in a period of five years. Other countries that are benefiting from it are Malawi, South Africa, Lesotho, Zambia, and Burundi.

On the other hand, the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology organizes annual secondary school Science Congresses where secondary school students showcase their science skills by presenting projects to compete at district, provincial, and national levels. The best projects are awarded certificates.

To narrow the gender gap among students taking science courses, organizations such as the African Forum for Women Educationist (FAWE), and other stakeholders have been working closely with the Ministry of Education Science and Technology to offer scholarships to bright girls from poor backgrounds who are interested in taking science courses.

The organization also provides books and other facilities to schools with only girl pupils to encourage students to take science subjects. It also runs media programs to make young girls believe that they too like their male counterparts have the ability to learn science and mathematics. FAWE awards prizes to girls who perform well in these subjects.

The Public Universities Joint Admission Board (JAB), has been facilitating admission of female students to the universities apparently to enable them to compete at par with their male colleagues. But in comparison with their male colleagues, the number of female students taking science courses is still low, because even if they secure admission, many of them fail to garner enough points in the cluster subjects required to pursue those courses.

In the sphere of Information and Communication Technology (ICT), despite being a new field of learning in Kenyan schools, the Ministry of Education has already included it in the secondary level syllabus. However, lack of equipment and trained teachers has hampered progress in expanding the teaching of this subject.

The government has only managed to introduce the subject in a few schools. In some parts of the country, secondary school students have never seen a personal computer! “Even if computers were to be introduced in this school, we lack a reliable source of power, so it would be difficult teaching the subject,” said Oscar Apondi, a secondary school teacher at a Lake Victoria’s island of Osieko in Western Province.

It is no wonder that there is already an emerging digital divide in the country with students in urban areas and more so in private schools getting access to computers at a relatively young age and acquiring skills to use them; whereas their counterparts in rural areas lack access to ICT resources.

Kenya envisages to be a newly industrialized country by 2020, but industrialization depends on advances in science and technology. There are complaints from many quarters that the government allocates few resources on research and development. In that respect, many challenges still need to be surmounted.

Despite wielding much influence in shaping the direction which the country takes, politicians have less time for issues pertaining to science and technology.

No wonder most skilled Kenyans who venture out of the country to look for ‘green pastures’, increasing the brain drain, are young and skilled people who have acquired their training in science courses at the local universities but are unable to effectively utilize their skills.

Kenya’s Deputy Minister for Education Science and Technology, Dr. Kilemi Mwiria stresses that science and technology should be taught to children from primary to university levels in African countries; and more funds should be invested in research and development for the continent to achieve sustainable development. He points out that such a move would enable countries like Kenya to attain industrialization, development, and reduce dependency on technologies hatched in the West. As for now, the struggle continues.

1. The 2005 Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology annual Scientific and Technological and Industrialization Conference.

2. SciDev.Net, 31^st July 2003.

** Wanzala Bahati Justus is a freelance journalist based in Nairobi, Kenya. Your emails will be forwarded to him by contacting the editor at: ScienceTech@islam-online.net