Parents and teachers have been asked to insist on approved textbooks to uphold standards in curriculum delivery.
According to Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD), which regulates learning materials, curriculum support materials that have not been vetted will compromise the quality of teaching and learning.
“Be careful especially with the revision books. Not every book that has the word grade on it that is fit for the Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC),” KICD Director, Dr Julius Jwan warned.
The complementary textbooks, he said, must be age-appropriate for children.
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He observed that some traders have taken advantage of the smooth rollout of the CBC to release books into the market that have not gone through the requisite quality checks.
Already, Longhorn Publishers has recalled a Grade Two textbook following concerns that it had misleading content that appear to encourage learners to commit suicide besides mocking people with mental health problems.
One of the questions that parents complained about was: “Alice says she looks bad. What should you tell her?” Choices provided for this question included: 1. God loves, 2. Kill herself.
The CEO confirmed that the Longhorn book, ‘Smart Score Encyclopedia Volume 1 is not listed in the Orange Book.
The Orange Book contains lists of books that have been approved by KICD for use in schools. It is available on the KICD website and it’s also available with the Ministry of Education officers Countrywide.
“Teachers especially principals and headteachers should also ensure the books they advise parents to buy for their children are those contained in the Orange Book, said Dr Jwan.
Some of the unscrupulous publishers are inserting fake imprints on such books to dupe unsuspecting buyers that they are approved.
“We urge the Quality Assurance officers in the field and other relevant government agencies to ensure that schools forcing parents to buy curriculum support materials that are not approved are prosecuted as provided by Section 27 (2) of the KICD Act 2013. We must be vigilant to protect our children, from inappropriate content,” Dr Jwan said.
