Parents, teachers trade blame as Raganga School's best KCSE student scores D

Parents have come forward with disturbing claims, alleging that students went for entire terms without being taught some subjects, only encountering them for the first time in Form Four.

Teachers, however, blame parents and the local community, saying the school has, since 1992, become a dumping ground for learners rejected elsewhere. 

The shocking KCSE results at Raganga Secondary School sparked outrage on Monday as angry villagers and parents stormed the institution. With all candidates scoring D grades and below, serious questions are now being raised about the school’s academic performance.

We returned to the school to uncover what has been happening behind its gates for decades and to understand the roots of the dismal results.

Inside the compound, the deputy principal and four teachers appeared visibly shaken, uncertainty written on their faces. According to the deputy principal, fear has now become part of their daily routine.

“Tunaishi kwa uwoga sana. Tumeambiwa mimi, mwalimu mkuu na mwalimu mwingine tusione kane kufikia Ijumaa,” said the deputy principal.

The state of learning facilities at Raganga Secondary School tells a story of neglect.

One classroom, built during the tenure of the late Education Cabinet Secretary Professor George Magoha, has now been converted into the school library. The few worn-out books available are all that students have to rely on.

At the laboratory, teachers say this is where chemistry and biology practicals are supposed to take place, despite the complete lack of water and electricity.

So why has Raganga Secondary School continued to post poor national examination results for over three decades?

Teachers speaking on condition of anonymity blame parents, claiming that since 1992 the school has been admitting learners with extremely low KCPE scores, some as low as 90, after being rejected by other schools.

“Shule ya Raganga imekuwa kama dumping site ya watoto waliokosa kwingine. Nawalaumu wazazi, kwa sababu watoto wazuri wanapelekwa shule nyingine. Shule yao yenyewe hawaipendi kabisa,” said Zipporah Matoke, a former board member.

Parents strongly disagree, instead accusing teachers of neglect, absenteeism and failing to complete the syllabus.

After spending nearly an hour inside Raganga Secondary School on a fact-finding mission, we took a different journey to trace some of the students who sat their exams at the institution and to seek more insights from members of the school board.

Just across Raganga Secondary School’s fence, a former student who had scored 310 marks in KCPE was transferred from Nakuru in an effort to boost academic standards. The outcome, however, was devastating, a D grade.

“Tulikuwa na shida kubwa. Walimu hawakuwa wanakuja kwa wakati. Agriculture tulianza kufanya tukiwa Form Four, tukirudia syllabus ya Form Two. Form One hatukuwa tumemaliza,” said the former student, whose name was withheld.

“Mtoto wangu alikuwa na marks mzuri sana. Kwa sababu ya uwezo nilimleta shule ya nyumbani, lakini alipomaliza alipata D+,” said Beatrice Sagini, a parent.

Two kilometres away, the story repeats itself, frustration, pain and shattered dreams.

“Mwalimu anaingia darasani Form Four anatufundisha kitu ambacho hatujawahi kuona. Unashangaa kumbe ni Form One topic ndio tunaona kwa mara ya kwanza,” said another former student whose face was blurred.

“Mimi kama mzazi nimeumia sana. Mtoto anasoma miaka nne halafu anatoka na D,” said Raganga resident Nguia Hudson.

As parents and teachers continue to point fingers, it is the students who are paying the heaviest price, victims of a system that has been struggling and collapsing since 1992.