The government plans to build 1,600 physical laboratories and 2,000 virtual labs in senior schools to support the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) pathway under the Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC).
Basic Education Principal Secretary (PS) Dr Belio Kipsang clarified during a stakeholders’ forum on education reforms in Mombasa that while STEM subjects, including mathematics, will be accessible in all schools, students will not be compelled to pursue them.
Learners will be free to choose from three pathways — STEM, Social Sciences, and Arts (which includes sports) — based on their interests and career goals.
“We must dispel the notion that mathematics is mandatory for every student. What’s required is that all schools must offer STEM as a pathway, but no learner is forced to take it,” Dr Kipsang explained.
He added that trial runs will be conducted throughout the year to simulate the new placement method, which will be fully implemented in January 2026.
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“The future lies in technology, so schools must prepare for this shift,” he said, adding that the government is collaborating with the National Treasury to ensure the release of the second tranche of capitation for senior schools.
Dr Kipsang stressed that students can choose their preferred pathway, whether in STEM, Social Sciences, or Arts, but noted that languages will remain a common requirement across all pathways.
“All students will have to study languages, whether Kiswahili, English or sign language,” he affirmed.
To support this transition, the government also plans to hire more teachers.
The initiative aligns with recommendations from the Presidential Working Party on Education Reforms, which proposed that 60 per cent of senior school learners should pursue STEM subjects.
The introduction of virtual labs aims to bridge infrastructure gaps in schools that lack fully equipped physical laboratories.
Dr Kipsang reiterated that the transition to senior school under CBC will be guided by career pathways, enabling students to specialise early in their fields of interest.
By Joseph Mambili
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