Comments on: Violence in Kenyan high schools http://www.kenyanpundit.com/2008/07/21/violence-in-kenyan-high-schools/ Opinions, commentary, na kadhalika Wed, 03 Dec 2008 23:56:15 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6 By: EACdirectory http://www.kenyanpundit.com/2008/07/21/violence-in-kenyan-high-schools/#comment-95941 EACdirectory Thu, 20 Nov 2008 05:45:30 +0000 http://www.kenyanpundit.com/?p=517#comment-95941 As a way of raising funds for schools to get access to internet and computers EACdirectory has come up with a "2009 SCHOOLS ONLINE PROJECT" where for a small fee of Kes. 2,000 you can promote a school with a website that they can use to access the globe and raise funds. Check more info here: eacdirectory.com/schools As a way of raising funds for schools to get access to internet and computers EACdirectory has come up with a “2009 SCHOOLS ONLINE PROJECT” where for a small fee of Kes. 2,000 you can promote a school with a website that they can use to access the globe and raise funds.

Check more info here:
eacdirectory.com/schools

]]> By: brayooh http://www.kenyanpundit.com/2008/07/21/violence-in-kenyan-high-schools/#comment-94437 brayooh Sun, 31 Aug 2008 12:31:26 +0000 http://www.kenyanpundit.com/?p=517#comment-94437 :evil:it something evil for schools to go on rampage without no clear reason.it is inhuman for someone to come with an idea of burning properties without no reasson.stiff action should be taken to those found guilty :evil:it something evil for schools to go on rampage without no clear reason.it is inhuman for someone to come with an idea of burning properties without no reasson.stiff action should be taken to those found guilty

]]> By: Just Africa http://www.kenyanpundit.com/2008/07/21/violence-in-kenyan-high-schools/#comment-93488 Just Africa Wed, 30 Jul 2008 13:08:18 +0000 http://www.kenyanpundit.com/?p=517#comment-93488 <strong>Profile: Kenyan Pundit ...</strong> Lawyer and political analyst Ory Okolloh’s blog, Kenyan Pundit, serves as place for the Kenya native to offer passionate and critical observations of news and politics in her homeland. Ory , who is currently working in Johannesburg, South Africa, sta... Profile: Kenyan Pundit …

Lawyer and political analyst Ory Okolloh’s blog, Kenyan Pundit, serves as place for the Kenya native to offer passionate and critical observations of news and politics in her homeland. Ory , who is currently working in Johannesburg, South Africa, sta…

]]> By: Petite http://www.kenyanpundit.com/2008/07/21/violence-in-kenyan-high-schools/#comment-93399 Petite Thu, 24 Jul 2008 14:50:44 +0000 http://www.kenyanpundit.com/?p=517#comment-93399 :cry: The recent wave of strikes in our high schools have left many with their mouths agape at the extent of damage that can be caused by our youngsters. A lot has been said about the probable causes to these strikes and the blame game continues. Some say parents, teachers, the government, the society, the students and so on. But the reality is we have not solved the underlying causes that may have resulted in this . The concerned parties should go to the students themselves who are causing this mayhem in our country and have their say. On a personal level I think our youth are TIRED (with emphasis). The society expects a lot from them i.e one has to get good grades to survive in the ' harsh' world as it is said. There is alot of pressure from both parents and teachers and at times students get overworked and looking closely they may have not understood anything in class. Some students are slow learners and some teachers are so unfair in that they concentrate on the fast learners leaving the slow ones to suffer in silence. I have been to high school and at some point I almost went into serious depression and stopped reading because I was frustrated and tired of the pressure from all corners. People set very high standards for me which I could not achieve but what could I do! just pretend that I was working hard when in real sense I wasn't. Thank God I performed well despite my predicament. What I'm trying to say is that there are other aspects which have to be looked at other than the ones stated e.g social especially when it comes to prefects who have excessive powers,peer pressure; spiritual- are their spiritual neds being met in the right manner?; physical e.g living conditions , proper diet and especially for those with serious medical conditions; emotional- are there efficient counselling services in place?, Is there an efficient communication channel between the students, teachers and administration or is there a breakdown of communication. These are other factors that have been overlooked( I stand to be corrected) that might have resulted in the strikes which of course to the students must have been the most effective way for expressing themselves. We should pray for this young generation and especially against the spirit of destruction and strikes which is on the loose. I hope someone digs deeper into this matter and come up with a lasting solution too this predicament facing us. We do not want to lose any more lives and justice should be done to the perpetrators of this as our schools are not places for moulding criminals! :cry: The recent wave of strikes in our high schools have left many with their mouths agape at the extent of damage that can be caused by our youngsters. A lot has been said about the probable causes to these strikes and the blame game continues. Some say parents, teachers, the government, the society, the students and so on. But the reality is we have not solved the underlying causes that may have resulted in this . The concerned parties should go to the students themselves who are causing this mayhem in our country and have their say. On a personal level I think our youth are TIRED (with emphasis). The society expects a lot from them i.e one has to get good grades to survive in the ‘ harsh’ world as it is said. There is alot of pressure from both parents and teachers and at times students get overworked and looking closely they may have not understood anything in class.
Some students are slow learners and some teachers are so unfair in that they concentrate on the fast learners leaving the slow ones to suffer in silence. I have been to high school and at some point I almost went into serious depression and stopped reading because I was frustrated and tired of the pressure from all corners.
People set very high standards for me which I could not achieve but what could I do! just pretend that I was working hard when in real sense I wasn’t. Thank God I performed well despite my predicament.
What I’m trying to say is that there are other aspects which have to be looked at other than the ones stated e.g social especially when it comes to prefects who have excessive powers,peer pressure; spiritual- are their spiritual neds being met in the right manner?; physical e.g living conditions , proper diet and especially for those with serious medical conditions; emotional- are there efficient counselling services in place?, Is there an efficient communication channel between the students, teachers and administration or is there a breakdown of communication. These are other factors that have been overlooked( I stand to be corrected) that might have resulted in the strikes which of course to the students must have been the most effective way for expressing themselves.
We should pray for this young generation and especially against the spirit of destruction and strikes which is on the loose. I hope someone digs deeper into this matter and come up with a lasting solution too this predicament facing us. We do not want to lose any more lives and justice should be done to the perpetrators of this as our schools are not places for moulding criminals!

]]> By: Toaf http://www.kenyanpundit.com/2008/07/21/violence-in-kenyan-high-schools/#comment-93381 Toaf Thu, 24 Jul 2008 06:48:38 +0000 http://www.kenyanpundit.com/?p=517#comment-93381 Very interesting comments here. Thanks. Very interesting comments here. Thanks.

]]> By: NonPulsed http://www.kenyanpundit.com/2008/07/21/violence-in-kenyan-high-schools/#comment-93345 NonPulsed Thu, 24 Jul 2008 01:11:29 +0000 http://www.kenyanpundit.com/?p=517#comment-93345 "We are not yet ready for that kind of freedom", wow, if a mzungu where to come out and say that there would be a huge uproar (and rightly so). So discipline is necessary for poor people? but not rich people? how about white people? This is so hilarious (in a sad way), something out of Fanon. What your stating is very similar to this, "Most officials, missionaries, and settlers thought it to be the convulsion of a bewildered people, disoriented by colonial development, literacy, exposure to modern markets, and the subversion of former social hierarchy. Such people were too easily led by self-seeking agitators, of whom Jomo Kenyatta was the chief. This explanation presumed that British rule was either too progressive to be assimilated by the native Kikuyu mind or that civilization had not yet penetrated far enough" (http://kenyaimagine.blogspot.com/2008/07/britains-mau-mau.html). It is the argument used against granting the colonies independence. Depending on which part of the political divide, switch Jomo with either Kibaki/Michuki/Karua, or Raila, and one will be able to continue the tired old argument from the 50's. Is it only me or isn't that exactly kind of the philosophy that Bush is using in the Middle East? How is it working? Has anyone in been to a traditional arbitration where grievances are resolved? Have they really seen what happens there? I nearly feel out of my chair when, I saw the similar techniques used in a case study, and role play in class!!! Discipline is needed, but so is leadership and accountability. The mock exam rumors did not circulate in a vacuum. As Vincent says, if they are false, the Ministry should have taken it upon themselves to quash the rumors. In the so called "mzungu" schools, students and parents would have been called the principal constantly, there would be articles in the newspaper, leaders would be questioned, there would be peaceful protests, etc. I might be wrong on this, but it seems that those kids with another option i.e. study abroad , USIU, are not rioting? e.g. St. Mary's , Msongari, et al. I know from personal experience, those kids are not more disciplined than rioters!!! “We are not yet ready for that kind of freedom”, wow, if a mzungu where to come out and say that there would be a huge uproar (and rightly so).
So discipline is necessary for poor people? but not rich people? how about white people?
This is so hilarious (in a sad way), something out of Fanon.

What your stating is very similar to this,
“Most officials, missionaries, and settlers thought it to be the convulsion of a bewildered people, disoriented by colonial development, literacy, exposure to modern markets, and the subversion of former social hierarchy. Such people were too easily led by self-seeking agitators, of whom Jomo Kenyatta was the chief. This explanation presumed that British rule was either too progressive to be assimilated by the native Kikuyu mind or that civilization had not yet penetrated far enough” (http://kenyaimagine.blogspot.com/2008/07/britains-mau-mau.html). It is the argument used against granting the colonies independence.

Depending on which part of the political divide, switch Jomo with either Kibaki/Michuki/Karua, or Raila, and one will be able to continue the tired old argument from the 50’s.

Is it only me or isn’t that exactly kind of the philosophy that Bush is using in the Middle East? How is it working?

Has anyone in been to a traditional arbitration where grievances are resolved? Have they really seen what happens there? I nearly feel out of my chair when, I saw the similar techniques used in a case study, and role play in class!!!

Discipline is needed, but so is leadership and accountability. The mock exam rumors did not circulate in a vacuum. As Vincent says, if they are false, the Ministry should have taken it upon themselves to quash the rumors. In the so called “mzungu” schools, students and parents would have been called the principal constantly, there would be articles in the newspaper, leaders would be questioned, there would be peaceful protests, etc.

I might be wrong on this, but it seems that those kids with another option i.e. study abroad , USIU, are not rioting? e.g. St. Mary’s , Msongari, et al. I know from personal experience, those kids are not more disciplined than rioters!!!

]]> By: KE http://www.kenyanpundit.com/2008/07/21/violence-in-kenyan-high-schools/#comment-93332 KE Wed, 23 Jul 2008 16:17:30 +0000 http://www.kenyanpundit.com/?p=517#comment-93332 I think part of the problem in Kenya is that we are associating "modernization" with "westernization" and so, we are loosening the discipline standards thinking that this means we are becoming more advanced and more modern when in fact, all we are doing is adopting western cultural norms (that produce less discipline) in a country that needs discipline. You can't loosen the disciplinary standards in a country of such poverty. They are too many angry, frustrated, young people and they have to be tightly controlled. Twenty years ago, these things didn't happen because there was strict discipline and severe corporal punishment. We need to stop trying to adopt the cultural norms of "mzungu" type schools because we are just not ready yet for that kind of "freedom". I think part of the problem in Kenya is that we are associating “modernization” with “westernization” and so, we are loosening the discipline standards thinking that this means we are becoming more advanced and more modern when in fact, all we are doing is adopting western cultural norms (that produce less discipline) in a country that needs discipline.

You can’t loosen the disciplinary standards in a country of such poverty. They are too many angry, frustrated, young people and they have to be tightly controlled. Twenty years ago, these things didn’t happen because there was strict discipline and severe corporal punishment. We need to stop trying to adopt the cultural norms of “mzungu” type schools because we are just not ready yet for that kind of “freedom”.

]]> By: Vince http://www.kenyanpundit.com/2008/07/21/violence-in-kenyan-high-schools/#comment-93331 Vince Wed, 23 Jul 2008 16:02:55 +0000 http://www.kenyanpundit.com/?p=517#comment-93331 About the NYT article on Kenyan technology, that was a great piece but the photo was quite off the mark. You open the URL thinking it’s about advancing phone technology and the first thing that hits you is a photo of dilapidated kiosk with a Masai man walking past. The impression I got was of a huge disconnect. Again, remember to most Westerners a photo of a Masai or wild beast is synonymous with Africa/Kenya. About the NYT article on Kenyan technology, that was a great piece but the photo was quite off the mark. You open the URL thinking it’s about advancing phone technology and the first thing that hits you is a photo of dilapidated kiosk with a Masai man walking past. The impression I got was of a huge disconnect. Again, remember to most Westerners a photo of a Masai or wild beast is synonymous with Africa/Kenya.

]]> By: Vince http://www.kenyanpundit.com/2008/07/21/violence-in-kenyan-high-schools/#comment-93329 Vince Wed, 23 Jul 2008 15:29:37 +0000 http://www.kenyanpundit.com/?p=517#comment-93329 For once I have to admit that I don’t quite understand what is going with these strikes in Kenyan schools. KP has done a great job of explaining to some of us the whole crux in her blog above. I attended high school in Kenya in the early 1990’s and strikes were always about bad food, more bread, bad head teachers, broken school buses etc. If I understand the current situation correctly, rumors over mock exams are somehow responsible for the current mayhem (again correct me guys if I am wrong). If it turns out that mock results are going to be used as the final results, then that is unfair to these young kids. Mock results were always not a good indicative of the final scores. They were always skewed. This can be compared to using the Olympics trials and friendly matches as final scores for the Olympics in Beijing. Countries will riot. If these are bogus rumors, then the Minister of Education should clarify this in a jiffy other than sitting on his rear and letting violence escalate. I don’t think these kids are that unreasonable to keep on burning their dormitories if they are told the truth. For once I have to admit that I don’t quite understand what is going with these strikes in Kenyan schools. KP has done a great job of explaining to some of us the whole crux in her blog above. I attended high school in Kenya in the early 1990’s and strikes were always about bad food, more bread, bad head teachers, broken school buses etc. If I understand the current situation correctly, rumors over mock exams are somehow responsible for the current mayhem (again correct me guys if I am wrong). If it turns out that mock results are going to be used as the final results, then that is unfair to these young kids. Mock results were always not a good indicative of the final scores. They were always skewed.
This can be compared to using the Olympics trials and friendly matches as final scores for the Olympics in Beijing. Countries will riot. If these are bogus rumors, then the Minister of Education should clarify this in a jiffy other than sitting on his rear and letting violence escalate. I don’t think these kids are that unreasonable to keep on burning their dormitories if they are told the truth.

]]> By: Geir http://www.kenyanpundit.com/2008/07/21/violence-in-kenyan-high-schools/#comment-93324 Geir Wed, 23 Jul 2008 08:35:25 +0000 http://www.kenyanpundit.com/?p=517#comment-93324 What about education leading to unemployment. Someone maybe unjustly told me that some of the most active criminal forces in Kenya today were disgruntled out of work resourceful university graduates. What about education leading to unemployment. Someone maybe unjustly told me that some of the most active criminal forces in Kenya today were disgruntled out of work resourceful university graduates.

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