KNEC gives another chance to those who missed KCSE exams as mid-year tests set for rollout

The Kenya National Examinations Council (KNEC) has invited candidates who missed their national exams or wish to retake them to apply for the upcoming series.

Speaking on Thursday during the release of the 2024 Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) exam results, KNEC CEO David Njeng’ere urged the public to seize the opportunity, noting that the final KCSE exams under the 8-4-4 curriculum will be administered in 2027.

“I wish to remind the public that the last KCSE examination will be administered in 2027. Any person wishing to repeat, fully or partially, should take advantage of the remaining chances to do so,” Njengere said.

Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba said plans are underway to introduce a mid-year KCSE exam series in July.

This will accommodate candidates who missed exams or wish to retake them.

“Starting this year, I wish to announce that KNEC will introduce a mid-year series of the KCSE examination to be administered in July every year. The examination will target candidates wishing to repeat the KCSE exam and those who may have missed sitting due to sickness or unexpected hardships,” he said.

Njeng’ere commended the 2024 KCSE candidates for their resilience, highlighting the challenges they faced as the first cohort whose examination calendar was disrupted by the Covid-19 pandemic. This group sat their Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) exam in March 2021.

A total of 965,501 candidates registered for the 2024 KCSE exam, marking a 6.89 per cent increase from the 903,260 who sat the exam in 2023.

Njeng’ere applauded centre managers for their efforts in ensuring accurate and timely registration of all candidates.

The assessment process began in January 2024 with projects in various practical subjects, including Agriculture, Art and Design, and Computer Studies. Theory papers and practical exams were conducted between 22 October and 22 November 2024.

A network of 610 distribution centres and 10,754 examination centres facilitated the process, with 103,125 contracted professionals, including teachers, security officers, and drivers, overseeing administration.

Njeng’ere further acknowledged the contribution of 30,370 examiners who marked the exams in 40 centres, praising their commitment to ensuring the successful completion of the process.

Next assessment cycle

Looking ahead, Njengere outlined KNEC’s preparations for the 2025 assessment cycle, which includes the introduction of the Kenya Junior Secondary Education Assessment (KJSEA) for learners in Grade 9 and the Kenya Pre-Vocational Level Education Assessment (KPVLEA) for those on the stage-based pathway.

The KJSEA is expected to assess over 1.1 million learners, while 5,306 will sit the KPVLEA.

Pilot tests conducted in July 2024 led to the development of sample papers, now accessible via the KNEC Competency-Based Assessment (CBA) portal.

Schools have been encouraged to use these resources to prepare their learners.

An online questionnaire will also be administered to KJSEA candidates to collect data on their interests and personalities, which will guide Senior School placements.

To streamline the Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC), parents and guardians will now be required to provide their ID numbers during learner registration. This data will also be used for future national assessments, including the KPSEA, KJSEA, and Grade 12 exams.

KNEC also announced that registration for the 2025 KPSEA candidates will begin on January 27, 2025, while portals for KJSEA and KCSE registration will open on 17 February 2025.

Njeng’ere warned centre managers to ensure candidates are registered for the correct subjects, as errors would result in deferral to 2026.

He expressed gratitude to all stakeholders for their support and wished the 2024 KCSE candidates success in their future endeavours.

He also assured candidates that their certificates would be ready by February 2025.