National Assembly deputy speaker Gladys Boss Shollei has urged the government not to take Grade 6 students to secondary schools.
Speaking during an interview with Citizen TV, the Uasin Gishu woman representative said the move will put the young ones in harm’s way.
“Please do not take the small children to secondary schools. As a mother of two generations of children, I have seen the difference. You cannot put them together,” she said.
Shollei said the challenges older children face are different from the young ones, adding that the move is ill advised.
“You don’t have to be an education expert, you just need to be a parent. The age difference is like night and day. The older ones go through different body changes that the young ones don’t,” she said.
The legislator said the government should take advantage of this opportune time to discuss the education system, as every education system should be reviewed after five years.
“We have tried it, we have seen the good and the bad of the CBC system. It is our chance as a country to look it and reset it on the right path,” she said.
Pokot South MP David Pkosing said Grade 6 students are children and should be retained in primary school, to allow the parents to mentor them until they are mature.
“They are practically kids, most of the secondary schools are boarding. Allow us, as parents, to mentor them first,” he said.
On Monday, more than 1.6 million registered Grade 6 candidates will sit for the Kenya Primary School Education Assessment exam.
Primary schools will have two exam sections, for Class 8 and Grade 6 pupils.
