The government has ruled out any changes to the school calendar, maintaining that the mid-term break will proceed as scheduled on June 24, even as student unrest continues to grip dozens of boarding schools across Kenya.
Basic Education Principal Secretary Julius Bitok made the declaration on Monday, June 8, during an ongoing 10-day inspection exercise at a Nairobi school, dismissing growing public pressure to send learners home early.
“We will not change the dates because of a few students attempting to disrupt learning in our schools. The school calendar will remain unchanged. Half-term break will begin on 24th of June as earlier communicated,” Bitok said.
The PS acknowledged that approximately 80 schools have been closed indefinitely due to unrest but was emphatic that this figure represents a fraction of Kenya’s over 9,500 learning institutions.
“Right now, we have about 80 schools with unrest out of 9,500 schools. So, 99.2 percent of our learning is ongoing. Because of 0.8 percent, we cannot interrupt the calendar of the rest,” he explained.
To contain the situation, the Ministry of Education has deployed an additional 400 quality assurance officers, raising the total from 600 to 1,000, with plans to further expand this number to 2,000 within a year. These officers, to be rebranded as school inspectors, will assess lesson delivery, school facilities, student welfare, and institutional leadership.
Bitok attributed part of the unrest to mounting pressure on students, noting that learners are increasingly influenced by social and family dynamics. He called on teachers to foster open dialogue with students through their leadership structures and to involve them in decisions that directly affect them, such as examination scheduling.
“We must engage the students through their student leadership organisations and open dialogue with them so that we can reduce tension,” the PS urged.
The ongoing nationwide inspection, which commenced on June 2, targets all boarding schools and is expected to yield findings that will inform further government action on student discipline, safety, and welfare.
Early reports from the exercise indicate that teachers, school heads, and students are largely cooperating to maintain stability.
The second term, which began on April 27, is scheduled to run for 14 weeks, with schools expected to close on July 31. After the mid-term break from June 24 to 28, learners will proceed to the August holiday — lasting three weeks — before the third term begins on August 24 and runs through October 23.
The Ministry says it remains committed to ensuring learning continuity while addressing emerging challenges through stakeholder engagement and strengthened institutional oversight.
