PS Bitok Issues New Directive To Schools Over Upcoming Exams
Julius Bitok, Education Principal Secretary, has urged schools to consider postponing mock exams.
Bitok claimed they are stoking tension and causing student unrest across the country.
PS Bitok stated that boards of management and school administrations should postpone tests if students are visibly unprepared, rather than forcing them into situations that cause riots.
He was addressing a meeting of education stakeholders on June 6.
“We have asked the boards of management and the school management to reconsider, even postponing the mock exams temporarily, to ensure that students do not riot,” stated PS Bitok.
Basic Education Principal Secretary Julius Bitok is now calling on headteachers to engage in dialogue and negotiate with their students regarding examinations, in a bid to address the ongoing rise in unrest in schools.@thejesserogers#Checkpoint pic.twitter.com/ZuT1ntYhBr— KTN News (@KTNNewsKE) June 7, 2026
PS Bitok blames examinations and altering exam schedules in schools for the majority of unrest and closures.
He emphasized that pushing pupils to take high-stakes examinations without sufficient preparedness checks was unproductive, and that open discourse would go much further.
“Let us have a conversation with the students. If they are not ready for a mock exam, you should be able to engage them,” stated PS Bitok.
“They should be able to tell you if that is what is causing tension in our schools.”
The directive comes as tension over exams has been identified as one of the key triggers behind the wave of unrest that has gripped dozens of schools over the past few weeks.
For instance, the shifting of exam schedules was one of the reasons that led to the torching of Utumishi Girls’ dormitory, which led to the death of 16 girls and the hospitalisation of scores of others.
Thus far, the education Ministry data also reveal that approximately 80 secondary schools in the country have experienced unrest.
This includes devastating arson attacks and precautionary walkouts, leading to indefinite closures or early send-home orders over the last three weeks.
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To help contain the situation, the government has deployed 1,000 quality assurance officers to affected schools, providing direct support on the ground where it is needed most.
A national audit of all boarding schools has also been ordered, set to run over the next 10 days, to establish whether the institutions meet basic safety standards.
Bitok further called on parents and teachers to strengthen guidance and counselling structures, and to rebuild student leadership so that learners feel heard rather than managed.
Despite the headlines, the PS was quick to reassure the public that the situation remains largely under control.
Currently, 99.2 per cent of schools continue to operate safely and normally. The PS emphasized that school dates are not going to change.
“So I want to tell the country 99.2 per cent of our schools are safe,” PS Bitok stated.
“Learning is going on well; less than 80 schools around the country are the ones which have problems, and we are not going to change the time dates because of 80 schools out of 52,000 schools.”
PS Bitok Issues New Directive To Schools Over Upcoming Exams
