It has been a week dominated by the education
sector.
First we had the results of the KCPE
national exam – and in a giant step forward
for a credible exam system, there was barely any
cheating under the new system for guarding exam
papers.
Then we had the graduation ceremony for the
University of Nairobi.
Both these should really serve to remind us of a
continuing tragedy within our country: That there
are hundreds of thousands of young Kenyans who
cannot find employment – of whom thousands
hold university degrees.
This is the ‘big picture’ within which all this
celebration of “clean exams” and the hosting of
graduation parties should be seen.
These are young people who are (mostly)
playing by the rules; studying seriously; aspiring
to various careers and professions – and then just
when they get to the top of the academic ladder,
they find that it does not lead to the jobs they had
dreamt of.
