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Parents across the country have been urged to exercise full participation in the implementation of Competency-based education approaches to ensure that their children fully exploit the potential to become globally competitive.

Harriet Kinya, the Academic Quality Assurance Manager at Zetech University noted the need for parents to help in identifying their children’s natural talents and abilities and work with the teachers to nurture them, monitor their growth and development.

“Parents should also be keen to identify any signs of disability for early intervention among others,” said Kinya.

With Competency Based Curriculum that was rolled out nationally in January 2019, Kinya expressed optimism that learners under the new system will have the necessary ability, motivation, attitudes, knowledge and skills to successfully solve problems in different situations and contexts.

“Competence-based education focuses on students’ learning where the student must be actively involved in the process of learning under the guidance of the teacher, who in this case is a facilitator of learning,” she noted.

The new system was founded to equip learners with seven core competencies among them communication and collaboration, self-efficacy, critical thinking and problem solving, creativity and imagination, citizenship, digital literacy and learning to learn.

For the learners to fully take up the new competencies, Kinya stressed that parental engagement in the learning process is essential since parents are the first educators, trainers and a source of authority for their children.

“The relationship between parents, learners and the teachers need to be strengthened to successfully realize the CBC goals at all education levels,” noted Kinya.

According to the guidelines prepared by the Kenyan Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD) in 2019, parents are supposed to participate in engaging with the teacher, a move that is meant to enrich their children’s learning experiences, provide tender and loving care to boost their children’s emotional safety and a sense of belonging.

Research has shown that parental engagement in schools is closely linked to positive student behavior, higher academic achievement, and enhanced social skills.