This morning, the curtains officially come down on 38-year-old Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) that has been on the chopping board for promoting cut-throat competition and battle for top grades.

It would be the end of an era as the country prepares to fully transition to Competency Based Curriculum (CBC) that has been hailed as a system aimed at creating a less burdensome and more student-friendly way of assessing learners and relieving the pressure of chasing top scores.

As the 1.4 million KCPE candidates transition to Form One next year, the first CBC class will be moving to Grade Eight under the Junior Secondary School.

Though being phased out, KCPE era has also left an indelible mark in the country. It was during the KCPE era that the country witnessed a departure from the past as the Government declared that all candidates were be allowed to sit for their exams, registered or not. The registration fee, previously a mandatory money that had locked out hundreds of pupils, was scrapped.

The Ministry of Education also authorised examination centres, where principals had for one reason or another failed to register candidates to ensure all are accommodated during the exams as they would never have another opportunity to sit exams.

Similarly, the Government promised to ensure provisions for those who may have missed out on sitting their exams for whatsoever reasons.

Save for a few incidents, such as the heavy downpour and insecurity in some parts of the country, this year’s exam has been a well-executed exercise that included the provision of helicopters to deliver papers to places where roads were rendered impassable.

Also, as part of enhancing security and integrity of the exercise, the Kenya National Examination Council this year packaged exam papers in different sets of boxes unlike previous years, where they were sealed in papers. With the pupils finalising their papers today, it is imperative for the government to ensure that no child is left out in Form One admissions next year since the primary section of the 8-4-4 system is over and done with.

As marking commences, the Government should ensure all learners rightfully get the marks they worked so hard for.