ILLUSION or UNCHECKED REALITy?

The 2010 kenya certificate of primary education results were announced just yesterday, thousands who have been waiting with abated breaths finally don't have to wait anymore.
A day latter, some are celebrating for their good grades and others are cursing because their results have been nullified. Despite the mixed reactions from different quarters the KCPE exams is the first major step in the kenyan academic life.

The top performers like is the kenyan tradition are given their chance to shine on the national televisions and part of that is the observation of a norm that no one knows its origin. The top candidates nationally are asked what they want to be in the future or better still where they would wish to work.

The top three performers this year want to be a pilot, aeronautical engineer and a neurosurgeon respectively. Quite ambitious indeed. There is nothing to prevent them from achieving this goals but this dreams are quite unrealistic, the question that comes to mind is who inspired this 13 year olds to choose such career dreams, what do they know about such professions? are they a product of passion? Or is it inspiration from role models? You and I agree that given the exam based kenyan education system its hard for this pupils to know what an aeronautical engineer does except the fact that they deal with planes. They choose such professions from what they hear from their parents that such professions are financially very rewarding in terms of hefty pay packages.
Role models are part of a lost era in kenya today, despite the integral part role models could play pupils and students in today do not have examplary people to emulate.

This is the story each year but how many of this ambitious dreams get to be realised?

The pupils need guidance and direction in the persuance of academic achievement and dreams, but what results when the existing structures do not allow the carrying out of these process of guiding and nurturing talents? The result is shattered dreams. This is the case with kenya and many other African states where the school is used as a means to eliminate others from moving up the ladders of education because of the limited schools, teachers and school stationaries and not a place where the pupils realize their potential and persue their goals. Or else how do you explain the fact that a three day exam period determines the outcome of 8 years of schooling and the fact that ones future depends on the marks obtained from that exam period.

The teachers who are entrusted with pupils should strive towards helping the pupils set realistic and achievable goals, the government on the hand should scrap the exam based evaluation and emphasis on nurturing of talent and persuance of dreams. The parents are also served with same role as teachers and should not fix the mind of the young ones to view career opportunities from the angle of financial rewards.

This post has no intention whatsoever of discouraging the 2010
top performers, I wish you all the best in the years to come.

ABOUT THIS BLOG

WELLCOMING NOTE.
Thank you for taking your time to visit this blog, feel free to comment on the posts that I will be publishing soon but first I will in a few words explain what this blog is all about.

ON THE SPOT is a blog that has been prompted by social decay and many unethical actions of the societal members and leaders in the world today. I will critically and annalytical try to devour the norms that has and is still leading to the emergence of a morally deficient society. My approach won't be any different from the many critics out there but I will with your help try to be as objective as can be.

This blog will majorly focus on the Kenyan society within the international system, it will examine many other issues affecting Africa today. Issues of Politics, development,poverty, peace, war and governmental dimensions shall dominate the posts on this blog. I will also be suggesting remedies to the problems that I will identify..

''Why focus on such issues?" You might ask, I won't answer that. My posts will provide the answer to your questions.

Like I said before your suggestions, comments and criticisms are all welcome. It will help shape the direction of the blog and in maintaining the views expressed are objective.

The topical posts will be a product of my own research.



Thank you. Dalle.