Kenya’s education transition, plainly

How the new system works

8-4-4 is retiring and Competency Based Education is arriving. Here is what actually changes, for parents first and in the official words second — updated 28 August 2026 as the plans firm up.

Is KCSE ending?

Yes — after the biggest sittings in its history. The 2026 exam runs this November with over a million candidates, and the November 2027 sitting is planned as the final KCSE. If your child is in Form 3 or Form 4 now, KCSE is still their exam, and nothing about it has changed: same papers, same marking, same university pathway.

What replaces it?

Three things, at three points in school life. At the end of Grade 9, learners sit KJSEA — the Kenya Junior School Education Assessment — which is reported in performance bands, not ranks. Through Grades 10 to 12, school-based assessments count toward the final result each year under the announced plan (15% in Grade 10, 15% in Grade 11, with the Grade 12 national examination carrying 70%). The first Grade 12 national examination under the new system is expected in 2028.

What are pathways?

At senior school (Grade 10), every learner chooses a pathway: STEM, Social Sciences, or Arts & Sports Science. Familiar subjects continue inside them — chemistry, biology, mathematics and physics live in STEM; every learner still takes English, Kiswahili, and mathematics in one of two forms (Core for STEM, Essential for the other pathways).

What are performance bands?

Instead of ranks and raw marks, the new assessments report levels: Exceeds Expectation, Meets Expectation, Approaches Expectation, Below Expectation. They describe what a learner can do, and they are exactly what Wantam's practice is built to move — a band is a level to climb, not a score to fear.

What does this mean for revision?

For KCSE candidates: nothing changes — past-paper practice and scheme-faithful marking remain the whole game, and Wantam is built for it. For Grade 9 and 10 learners: the content of the new curriculum overlaps heavily with what came before, so strong subject practice still counts — what changes is how it is assessed, and Wantam is adding band-based practice to match.

Details still being finalised nationally (final examination dates and weightings) are described here as announced plans. Where school letters use terms like learning areas, strands, CSL or SBA — those are the official names for subjects, topics, community service learning and school-based assessment.