Mr Sang,
 
Thanks for this response, this is good. I look forward to the conference and the due inclusion of the digital learning materials in the yellow (orange?) book, although you may not be aware that this activity last year (2009) was fraught with confusion over the discription of econtent vis a vis ebooks and digitzed curriculum etc.
 
I do hope this year will be more beneficial as there are very many content providers out there and I am sure that they will be more than willing to get genuine direction from KIE in order to achieve certification for their products to be used in our schools to improve the lives of our children.
 
Small clarification if I may, there are a total of 52 processes undergone in the developement of educational content. The teachers oversees 32 of these processes. the balance is left for the experts in various fields such as fine artists, visualizers, computer whiz kids and all. This proces by ratio takes up 70% of the activity with the teachers accounting for 30 % and this includes all quality checks and peer to peer evaluations as well. I hope that this helps KIE in their efforts.
 
Mr Sang if you could send us the report on the Nepad eSchools together with the list of schools that are enjoying the form 1 & 2 KIE digitized curriculum, albeit offline, it would be most appreciated as the reports we get off the field do not flatter these two initiatives and I would love to get the official unbiased ministry position.
 
regards
 
 
Fatma
 
 


 
On Thu, Mar 4, 2010 at 1:59 PM, Barnabas K. Sang <bksang@education.go.ke> wrote:

Hi Akich, Fatma & Mincy, et al

 

Rightly, your observations are true in some instances. But recalling even in the old days when KIE printed textbooks, the ultimate source is one, even today: the teacher. Why should someone else develop content rather than the teacher?

 

Ofcourse the answer is capacity building and preparedness of our institutions to facilitate teachers play that role.

 

KIE has finalized the standards and guidelines aimed at harmonizing the evaluation process for both electronic and print learning materials, to guide publishers / content suppliers in developing quality digital materials appropriate for use in Kenyan schools. This has been a process, considering that such could not take place two years ago. This marks the start of evaluation of digital materials and approval for use. We know some content has been in schools long before this exercise, and has been referred to as supplementary materials that any school or institution could choose to acquire and use in curriculum delivery. Case in mind is NEPAD E-Schools and even most of the 210 E-Schools facilitate by gok in previous periods. Some public-private sector partners including NGOs too have facilitate a number of interventions in this area.

 

This year, all digital content materials will be included in the popular yellow booklet that guide schools in selecting teaching materials (both print and electronic) for use by teachers and students.

 

Performance of subjects have been more or less the same graphically in the last five years, if one checked the grades and mean scores. The good news is that, both policy makers and implementers are engaged in hard-soul-searching questions on how to reverse this phenomenon. Strategies that would enhance this engagement are highly welcomed.

 

Mincy, MOE has put in place various strategies to get deeply involved on issues of pedagogy in ICT4E. We have ICT Integration Committee which assesses interventions in the eyes of pedagogy-> teacher professional development, collaboration and sharing, curriculum delivery and access (considering digital divide). Comments noted on leapfrog and avoiding re-invent of effort.

 

For top 100 students, I have  attached list of all A- and As and link to schools. That might perhaps help you as key stakeholder have more insight. I though they were few only to realise they are more than 5,337 Candidates, of which 1,685 Girls.

 

Kind regards

 

B. K. Sang

 

From: Fatma Bashir [mailto:fatma.bashir@gmail.com]
Sent: 04 March 2010 12:06


To: Barnabas K. Sang
Cc: alewela; ke users; KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions
Subject: Re: [kictanet] KCSE Performance

 

Mr Sang,

 

Thanks for the detailed reply to Ediths queries. Apart from the girl child, I noted with concern that the performance of the sciences and Mathematics is hurting more than that of the humanities and languages. This is not news. Its our annual cry as an education body every march.

 

Shouldnt our efforts at KIE be to develop content that will assist the delivery of these subject areas as clearly this is where the challenge is? It has also been 3 years since the initiative started at KIE? why has it taken this long? and is it possible to  let us know ( offline) which schools have benfitted from the KIE content?

As a player in this sector I am very interested to monitor the progress of digitzed content as a curriculum enrichment tool because we have been waiting in the sidelines since FEBRUARY 2008 for the MOE to release the report that the KIE provided them with on the evaluation of Digitzed content from the private sector that was to be used in the schools digitization program for the first 210 school nationwide. I am sure today we would have alteast been looking at a vast improvement in science and maths grades in over 200 schools.

 

I think that the KIE initiative to digitze content for the schools is commendable but I hope it does fall prey to the challenges that KIE faced when it was responsible for publishing of text books? I thought we learnt our lesson then? futher more other countries seem to have realized that the teacher/student creation of content model is a failure and that outsourcing is the way to go. ( Uganda, Malaysia, India)

 

Lastly, it is always important to try and do things ourselves after all how would we grow? but imagine if we refused the mobile phone, computer, the car and medical technology because we simply had to create it ourselves, not caring that others had the technology ready for us to use...where would be ?

 

 

Fatma

 



 

On Thu, Mar 4, 2010 at 11:21 AM, Barnabas K. Sang <bksang@education.go.ke> wrote:

Edith,

 

Digitization of Content is ongoing at KIE with Form 1 & 2 done for all Subjects and work is ongoing for the other forms.

 

Primary 4,5,6 & 7 have been digitized and work for other classes will soon start.

 

The Ministry in collaboration with sector partners is organizing a Regional Education Conference on E-learning, 29 – 31 March 2010 at KIE, where issues on ICT Integration and use of digitized content will be discussed. MOE in the next year’s budget has also factored in resources for availing the same to schools (particularly with ICT infrastructure). Current focus is not starting Computer Studies in schools, but empowering all teachers to use modern tools in curriculum delivery. English, Geography, History, Mathematics .... teachers should use ICT to make classes fun and educative for the learners. Learners should participate in the creation of content, sharing and collaborating in the classroom environment.

 

ICT Integration programmes are underway in some of the institutions in the Ministry: CEMASTEA (focuses on INSET for teacher – not only science and mathematics, but all other subject areas) and KESI (focusing on education management and administration). KIE – digitization of content and setting of standards for publishers and interested content developers for use in Kenyan schools.

 

Pertaining schools which got resources in support for ICT, the delays were occassioned by some providers admitting lack of capacity to deliver and yet they had been paid initial deposit. Legal process is underway to indemnify schools of such acts. In some instance, schools also delayed in awarding contracts, due to lack of capacity to interpret and use the new procurement law (management of procurement process).

 

Kind regards

 

B. K. Sang

 

 

 

From: Edith Adera [mailto:eadera@idrc.or.ke]
Sent: 04 March 2010 09:32
To: Barnabas K. Sang


Cc: alewela; ke users; KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions

Subject: RE: KCSE Performance

 

Mr Sang,

 

It was VERY sad indeed to see the girl child perform so poorly! What measures are being put in place to change this?

 

When is digital curriculum, being developed by KIE going to be out and made available to schools? Years of research has shown that they greatly enhance teaching and learning - and promote self learning too. We have to deal with other factors that lead to poor performance, but I think multimedia curriuculum content needs to be availed to schools ASAP along with computerization.

 

What became of the computerization program you were running? Some schools are still waiting for computers promised to them...many months and years down the line!

 

Edith

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

From: kictanet-bounces+eadera=idrc.or.ke@lists.kictanet.or.ke [kictanet-bounces+eadera=idrc.or.ke@lists.kictanet.or.ke] On Behalf Of Barnabas K. Sang [bksang@education.go.ke]
Sent: 04 March 2010 09:26
To: Edith Adera
Cc: alewela; ke users; KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions
Subject: Re: [kictanet] KCSE Performance

Thought would be of interest to you.

 

Kind regards

 

B. K. Sang

 


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