The school has come up with several projects to ensure your child performs well and this requires that you pay Sh10,000 per year towards the welfare of teachers, non-teaching staff and the students
Fears are emerging that Parents Association officials are pushing their fellow parents to the wall with the unscrupulous endorsement of additional levies in schools. Many are colluding with school administrators to exploit parents, yet they are expected to be the parents’ ‘advocates'.
The representatives have gone to bed with head teachers as they are used to support decisions such as seeking additional funds from parents to cater for expenses such as motivation fees for teachers, purchase of items like uniforms from specific suppliers and purchase of reading manuals from teachers at costs, determined by the schools.
The officials are coached to 'sell fear' to parents that their children would perform dismally if the teachers are not 'motivated' and that notes prepared from the approved textbooks that are available in the schools, are best tailored to ensure the learners pass with flying colours.
“The school has come up with several projects to ensure your child performs well and this requires that you pay Sh10,000 per year towards the welfare of teachers, non-teaching staff and the students,” a message from a school to parents, reads in part.
Though the letter has the school’s logo, it is signed by the PA chairperson and not the school principal and the bank account number provided is different from the one for school fees. There is even an option of a paybill number for those who cannot access the banks on time.
It is not clear how the school arrives at the amount, which totals Sh7 million per year for the 700 students in Form 1. The same amount or more is paid by parents in the other classes.
There are unconfirmed reports that some of the money generated is used to bribe examiners to ensure the school maintains an impressive performance in national examinations, to justify the annual collections.
The Parliamentary Committee on Education is investigating claims that the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education exam has been commercialised.
It is unfortunate that the parents’ representatives hide in the Third Schedule of the Basic Education Act that provides for the ‘establishment and functions of the Parents Associations’ to sanction illegalities through selective application of the guidelines.
For instance, although the Act gives the parents association powers to explore ways to motivate the teachers and pupils to improve their performance, some head teachers have managed to convince gullible parents’ representatives that these options only mean monetary support.
The government has made it clear that any additional levy must be recommended to the Ministry of Education for approval.
Failure by the government to release capitation funds on time doesn’t shift the burden to the parent, unless the funds will be refunded when the government finally remits the allocations to schools.
The challenges posed by the government’s 100 per cent transition policy cannot be an excuse for head teachers to seek money through the backdoor. Some PA chairpersons have unfortunately turned schools to personal investment clubs and blatantly use the schools’ official letterheads to send the financial demands with tight deadlines, to parents.
Besides the need to review the Education Act to fix the areas that appear vague and thus open to manipulation to the parents disadvantage, the election of the parents who represent each class in the executive committee that constitutes all class representatives in the school must be above board.
In the current situation, school administrators have an upper hand in influencing those to serve on those committees. After all, the election is done barely weeks after the Form 1 students report to school and rarely do they vote for a parent based on their ability because they have no history of the person.
The parents are enticed to support the unauthorised levies, which also end in their pockets in the form of exaggerated allowances and fare reimbursements. In one of the schools, a head teacher of another school was elected in the guise that he understands education-related laws, policies and regulation yet it emerged later that ‘he was out to compare notes about the situation in his school'.
What miracle should parents expect with representation from someone who is also demanding additional levies in his school?
The parents’ representatives are usually provided with a list of levies outside the government fee structure and they are asked to endorse the resolutions in the guise that, “the charges have been part of the school for many years.”
They are never afforded an opportunity to discuss the issues with the parents that they represent before a final decision is made on what should be presented before all the parents. A vote is eventually taken through acclamation, when parents are invited for a meeting.
Those elected to represent parents must desist from breaking the same guidelines they are expected to insulate parents against. The parents have conferred the right unto them to be their ambassadors to save them from the jaws of school administrators who are out to exploit them.
They should not let down the parents who have confidence in them by accepting to be compromised on the promise that they stand to benefit as individuals.
The government must also wake up and enforce what it says. Circulars to schools that spell out the government's position on a range of issues without a follow-up to guarantee compliance are a waste of time and resources.
Ikui is a parent who comments on topical issues. [email protected]
