Faulty School Data Delays Grade 10 Textbook Distribution
The government has acknowledged that inaccurate learner enrolment data submitted by senior schools has disrupted the distribution of Grade 10 textbooks under the Competency-Based Education (CBE) curriculum, leaving some institutions without adequate learning materials several months into the academic year.
The latest challenge adds to longstanding concerns regarding education data management within the Ministry of Education, which has repeatedly faced difficulties in maintaining accurate learner enrolment records despite the existence of the National Education Management Information System (NEMIS).
According to the Chief Executive Officer of the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD), Professor Charles Ong’ondo, inconsistencies in learner enrolment data submitted by school principals have significantly affected textbook procurement and distribution for Grade 10 learners.
Professor Ong’ondo explained that KICD evaluates textbook requirements, awards procurement contracts to publishers based on learner enrolment and subject selection, and subsequently provides publishers with lists of schools and the quantities of textbooks required for distribution.
For the initial Grade 10 rollout, the Ministry of Education supplied KICD with projected enrolment figures to facilitate the printing and distribution of textbooks before schools reopened.
“Last year, because we did not want learners to begin Grade 10 without textbooks, the Ministry of Education gave KICD a list of books, schools and the projected number of learners for every subject. Come January 2026, we distributed those materials faithfully. What happened during school selection, you know,” Professor Ong’ondo said.
He stated that the projected figures changed substantially after learners completed senior school placement and selected their preferred career pathways.
According to Professor Ong’ondo, subsequent requests for actual Grade 10 enrolment data revealed major inconsistencies, with some schools overstating learner numbers while others significantly understated enrolment. The inaccurate reporting resulted in some schools receiving excess textbooks while others experienced severe shortages.
“In some schools, the projected enrolment was 500 learners, but they now have 1,500 students. In other schools, we projected 500 learners, but only 50 enrolled. As a result, the learning materials are no longer commensurate with the number of learners,” he said.
Professor Ong’ondo appealed to school principals to submit accurate enrolment figures, including the number of learners registered for every learning area, to facilitate redistribution of available textbooks and improve planning for future textbook procurement.
Under the Competency-Based Education curriculum, learners specialize in one of three senior school pathways:
- Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM)
- Social Sciences
- Arts and Sports Science
Progression to higher education is aligned with the selected pathway.
School administrators indicated that continued transfers between pathways have complicated efforts to generate accurate enrolment statistics.
One principal from Bungoma County stated that learners continue requesting transfers after admission because some selected schools based on institutional reputation without confirming the availability of their preferred pathways.
“We are still receiving requests from learners who want to change pathways. Some enrolled in particular schools because of their reputation without fully understanding whether the pathway they wanted was available. Every transfer affects our class organisation, staffing and resource planning,” the principal said.
Another principal reported that learner movement has continued beyond the first term, requiring repeated adjustments to timetables, subject allocations and enrolment records submitted to the Ministry of Education.
“We had hoped the movement would settle by the end of the first term, but learners are still reconsidering their choices. Each time a learner changes pathways, we have to adjust timetables, subject allocations and update the enrolment records we submit to the Ministry. The biggest concern is that we cannot accurately project the number of textbooks required until learner numbers stabilise. If we submit figures too early, we risk either receiving excess books or ending up with shortages,” the principal said.
Professor Ong’ondo said KICD has repeatedly requested accurate enrolment information from schools.
“I am desperate for principals to give us the correct number of learners in every subject and indicate the subjects they are taking. I have sent letters to principals, reached out to individual administrators and even published notices in newspapers,” he said.
He disclosed that although Kenya has approximately 10,000 secondary schools, only 5,996 institutions have submitted Grade 10 enrolment data.
Professor Ong’ondo further revealed that the data already received contains significant inconsistencies.
“The data has some interesting information. Some schools have submitted data four times, and all the figures are different,” he said.
According to KICD, the submitted information must first be verified jointly with the Ministry of Education before publishers receive revised distribution instructions.
“What should happen is that KICD and the Ministry collate the figures and then direct publishers. For example, if a publisher is distributing books in Bungoma County, they should know which schools are offering which learning areas and the exact number of learners in each school. We cannot do this for every school in isolation. That is what is causing the delay,” Professor Ong’ondo said.
He cautioned that unresolved data inaccuracies could create additional logistical challenges during the transition of the current Grade 10 cohort to Grade 11.
“If we do not correct this now, we shall have even more trouble in Grade 11 because that is the same list we are using. Grade 11 books are already ready. Once this list is verified, we shall ask publishers to begin distributing Grade 11 books to schools in September,” he said.
Professor Ong’ondo also confirmed that curriculum designs for Grade 11 and Grade 12 have already been developed and made available through the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development website.
He further stated that sufficient textbooks exist nationally for every learning area.
“As we continue compiling the enrolment data, I want to assure Kenyans that this country has textbooks for every learning area. If any school is stranded, they should reach out to me,” he said.
Preliminary analysis conducted by KICD indicates that the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) pathway has attracted the highest number of learners, followed by Social Sciences, while Arts and Sports Science currently records comparatively lower enrolment.
The Chairperson of the Kenya Publishers Association, Musyoki Muli, acknowledged that publishers have encountered significant challenges in distributing Grade 10 textbooks because textbook production and supply depend entirely on government-approved learner data.
“Of course, we don’t have the correct data. When we were supplying Grade 10, we supplied very few quantities. As a result, learners in schools don’t have adequate materials. But we can’t supply to the required numbers without an order, and that order is dependent on data. The government is trying to sort that out,” Mr Muli said.
He stated that publishers have fulfilled all government-issued orders based on the quantities communicated by KICD.
“When the government gives us the quantities of books to supply per school, we supply those quantities, and we have accomplished that 100 per cent. Technically speaking, we can’t say we don’t have data to supply because, if that’s what the government needed, we’ve given them exactly what they asked for,” he said.
Mr Muli added that actual textbook demand can only be established after schools submit verified learner enrolment data to the Ministry of Education, which is then transmitted to KICD for procurement and distribution.
“The data showing the actual need can only come from the Ministry of Education, and therefore it can only come from schools. Whatever data KICD gives us is the data that we supply to. That is the basis upon which we print and distribute textbooks,” he said.
The Kenya Publishers Association also disclosed that the government currently owes publishers a cumulative Sh9.2 billion for textbooks already supplied, warning that the outstanding payments could affect preparation for Grade 11 textbook distribution.
“It will affect the next level of supply because we printed on credit. We owe printers, we owe other suppliers, we owe our designers, we owe our illustrators, and we also owe authors who have not received their royalties,” Mr Muli said.
He further noted that delayed payments have affected authors whose royalties remain unpaid.
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“If you tell an author to continue writing when they didn’t earn their royalty or receive their payment from the last supply, they begin to feel that you’re not being truthful,” Mr Muli said.
He stated that Grade 11 textbook distribution is expected to commence before the end of the year to ensure all schools receive learning materials before learners report in January.
“Grade 11 is coming in the next few months. By December, all schools should have books for Grade 11 so that by the time learners report in January, the books are already available. By now, for Grade 10, schools should already know how many learners have settled in each pathway. Once that data is available, it will be possible to determine the difference between what was supplied and what still needs to be supplied,” Mr Muli said.
Faulty School Data Delays Grade 10 Textbook Distribution
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