Curriculum Support Officer (CSOs) and Quality Assurance and Standards Officers (QASOs) across the country, on April 22, started a preparatory and capacity development workshop aimed at equipping them for Kenya Primary Literacy Programme (KPLP).
KPLP initiative supports Ministry of Education to deliver interventions and expand innovations that address the language and literacy needs of primary grade learners while building more accountable, inclusive and resilient students.
It also seeks to reclaim and build upon the learning outcomes achieved at 2019 Tusome Early Grade Reading endline evaluation.
Tusome initiative was aimed at improving literacy outcomes for primary school children. The donor-funded initaitive took place from 2014 to 2022 and reached 7.8 million children in Grades 1 to 3 across the country.
In Busia County, Busia County Director Ministry of Education James Ekalio addressing CSOs and QASOs from the area acknowledged that there’s a notable level of illiteracy in all levels of schools in the county.
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The Director said that there is more to be done in order to improve literacy in Kenyan lower grades of learning.
This, according to him, will stem the rising cases of increased literacy challenges in secondary schools in the county.
Ekalio called upon the CSOs and QASOs to ensure the sustainability of the programme is upheld as they are the key drivers in it.
The programme, he said, will be expected to go upto the community level where youth organisations will be brought on board to improve literacy rates in the country.
On his part, Busia TSC County Director Francis Saina said that the CSOs are vibrant group with undoubted capacity to undertake the programme to a remarkable success.
He said the programme has come at the right time when Competency Based Curriculum is at its full implementation in comprehensive schools.
Some of the factors that contribute to low literacy rates in Kenya include inadequate parental involvement, poor health, poor instructional strategies, limited access to learning resources, negative influence from the first language and low literacy levels of the learner’s parents.
The commencement of the training for QASOs and CSOs in preparation for KPLP kicked off on April 22 in all counties across the country.
By our reporter
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