A new examination has been developed for Junior School candidates as they transit to Senior Secondary School. The new examination will be done at grade 9 which will mark the end of Junior School.

The Kenya National Examinations Council (Knec) is in advanced stages of preparing to conduct a pilot end of junior school assessment before October in all the 47 counties.

The pilot will be in preparation for the administration of a summative assessment in 2025 that will see the pioneer competency-based curriculum (CBC) learners transition to senior school. The assessment will be in two parts and will be used to place learners in the various pathways in senior school and will involve multiple-choice questions.

A Junior School learner’s final score will be a combination of the summative assessment and the school-based formative assessments undertaken in Grade Seven and Eight.

The new assessment will replace the Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) examinations whose last edition was administered last year.

The new Competency Based Curriculum, CBC, assessment will now be called the Kenya Junior School Education Assessment (KJSEA).

To calculate the total score, for a Junior School candidate, the following formula will be used:

• 20 per cent from the Kenya Primary School Education Assessment at the end of Grade Six,
• 20 per cent from school-based assessments in Grade Seven and Eight and
• 60 per cent from the Grade Nine summative assessment.

Knec boss has explained CBC aims to ensure that at least 60 per cent of learners take up science, technology, engineering and mathematics (Stem) pathway, with 25 per cent pursuing social sciences and 15 per cent focusing on arts and sports.

The first KJSEA Exams will be done in 2025.