All students countrywide will get personal identification numbers by the end of this month.
Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiangi says, the National Education Management Information System (EMIS) for which a national launch is set for this month is a management tool that will be a source of accurate, reliable and timely education data.
Matiangi, who chairs the project said that “the system’s data will be validated in a systematic manner and that the first phase of reform will ensure that every student in Kenya will have a six-character Unique Personal Identifier.”
He explained that it has been designed in such a way that only head teachers can upload information directly to the system and only they can change their data.
Matiangi stated that, to enhance accountability for education data, EMIS has been designed in such a way that only head teachers can upload information directly to the system and only they can change their data.“No one else will be able to alter the data submitted online by the schools.”
“The system has been designed to generate critical primary and secondary data, depending on the needs of the users,” he said.
He observed that the system will enable the Kenyan government to pinpoint wastage and leakage of resources and hence increase accountability for the taxpayer resources.
“The ministry expects to realise substantial savings in capitation grants once the system is implemented,” he added.
The second phase of EMIS will include a mechanism for monitoring learning in basic education, he added.
“For EMIS, it is proposed that Kenya National Examinations Council (KNEC) undertakes annual learner management assessments in grades 3, 6 and 10,” the CS said.
He pointed out that to ensure sustainability of the EMIS reforms, a policy and a legal framework were being developed alongside the system.
“The new EMIS system is being undertaken locally by Kenyans through a joint effort with line ministries such as ICT and Interior.”
The World Bank and the Global Partnership for Education (GPE) are providing technical assistance and resources for the EMIS system.
The CS said the teacher management reforms were prompted by the unprecedented high rate of teacher absenteeism, coupled with inadequate mastery of subject matter content and pedagogic skills
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