At Kapng’etino Primary in Bartabwa ward, Baringo North, Grade 3 pupils are crammed around a few desks in a dusty, mud-wall classroom whose rafters are almost falling apart.
The school lacks basic learning facilities. Its 85 pupils share a single pit latrine with teachers. The latrine was built last year by World Vision.
Only three TSC employed teachers attend to pupils whose number keeps fluctuating, depending on the availability of food and water.
Pupils either drop out and stay at home or transfer to schools that have food.
The Star visited Kapng’etino Primary School on Tuesday.
“Although the Ministry of Education issued us with some 20 tablets, a projector and a laptop, digital learning is not a priority for now because of the challenges we face,” headteacher Daniel Lomul said.
Many primary schools in Baringo North subcounty have not rolled out the government digital learning programme due to dilapidated facilities.
Last month, the Ministry of Education denied that the laptops project has collapsed.
“The project has not failed. It was rolled out nationwide after the successes of the pilot. The gadgets are in use,” CS Amina Mohamed told the Star.
Head teacher Lomul cited lack of good classrooms, chairs, desks and shortage of teachers as his biggest headaches.
“We have only three teachers employed by the Teachers Service Commission. None except me has basic computer knowledge.”
The headteacher has locked the delicate gadgets in a cupboard in his temporary iron-sheet office. He says they are safe from dust.
According to Lomul, the management board was in 2012 forced to move the school 10km away to Kisumet near Bartabwa due to cattle rustling and banditry.
“The few plastic chairs donated by Unicef are not enough, forcing the pupils to share one while others arrange some stones in the classroom to sit on,” he said.
Hunger and water shortage keep many children out of school.
The rain water harvested in a plastic tank has run out as well as food.
The headteacher said he might close the institution if there is a solution to the problems is not found.
“We had our last meal in school two weeks after schools opened this term. Since then, many of our pupils are already dropping out while others are transferred to neighbouring schools with a feeding programme.”
Lomul added: “Sometimes we register only three pupils in a classroom of 12 as the number keeps dropping.”
Similar problems are experienced by more than 10,000 pupils in over 20 other schools in the subcounty.
Schools in neighbouring Tiaty, Mogotio and Baringo South subcounties are not any better.
Digital learning remains a pipe dream as pupils are often taught in the open under trees. They are at the risk of being bitten by scorpions and snakes.
Maramar Primary School headteacher Joshua Chepsergon said the mud-wall classrooms without electricity can not support the laptop project.
Area MP William Cheptumo says he has tried his best to use the National Government Constituency Development Funds to improve the schools in his constituency.
“I don’t deny the fact that there are still bad schools but throughout my three terms at least I have tried to reduce the percentage from 70 to 30. But more still needs to be done,” Cheptumo said.