Inside the KCSE Cheating Scandal: Teachers Slapped with Ksh.2M Bond Each, Students Caught with Phones as Exam Chaos Unfolds.
The 2024 KCSE exams are already stirring controversy, with a crackdown on exam malpractice sparking a wave of intense reactions. In a striking move, ten teachers from Pala Masogo Secondary School in Homa Bay County have been slapped with a Ksh.2 million bond each following allegations of facilitating exam fraud. Meanwhile, other exam centers have reported cases of candidates sneaking phones into the exam hall, raising further alarm. This year’s KCSE season seems anything but ordinary, with stories of exam leaks, heightened security, and even students sitting exams from hospital beds across the country.
Appearing before Homa Bay Senior Resident Magistrate Christine Auka, the ten teachers denied three fraud-related counts of examination malpractice. Among the accused was the school’s center manager. Each of them was issued a Ksh.2 million bond with a surety of the same amount or an alternative Ksh.1 million cash bail.
“It is so directed that summons be issued to the investigating officer to address the matters raised by the defence on when the accused persons were arrested, and we have consented that the matter be mentioned on 20th November 2024 for purposes of setting up a pretrial,” said Magistrate Auka.
The teachers were reportedly caught photocopying the 2024 KCSE Chemistry paper, a violation that has cast a shadow over the credibility of the ongoing exams.
On the third day of the KCSE exams, other irregularities emerged in Kiambu County, where two candidates from Membley High School were found in possession of unauthorized material. Ruiru Deputy County Commissioner Julius Too confirmed that the students were caught with mobile phones just before their exam. Although the phones hadn’t been used, the discovery has raised questions about potential leaks and the security of exam materials.
“They will continue with the exams, so we have allowed them to sit, and the Kenya Examination Council will take action as the police also take action, but I assure you the exam has not leaked,” said Ruiru DCIO Jeremiah Ndubai.
In other parts of the country, challenges surrounding the KCSE exams took a different form. In Laikipia County, two candidates were allowed to write their papers from hospital beds in Nyahururu County Hospital. One candidate, who recently gave birth, sought permission to avoid the strain of daily travel, while another student appealed to authorities to take her unique circumstances into account.
One of the candidates explained, “Naamka mapema naenda kwa DC niwagojee niende na wao juu sina means ingine ya kwenda shule ni hao ndio nategemea wanipeleke na wanirudishe na huko shule napia challenges mingi kama kukalia form na nimeshonwa,” highlighting the strain of her journey each day. Her mother added, “Mtusaidie tu afanyie huko kwa hospitali asiteseke sana sababu kwa sasa anateseka sana juu anatoka saa kumi na mbili kwa hospitali na anarudi saa kumi na mbili na mtoto wake ako nursery.”
In Kericho, three other candidates from Kaplong also sat their exams from hospital beds due to health challenges.
As the KCSE exams progress, the rising cases of malpractice are putting educational integrity in the spotlight. While authorities maintain that exam content is secure, the challenges and irregularities highlight the lengths some are willing to go in pursuit of success. The unfolding drama in Kenya’s exam season reminds us of the urgency of preserving academic honesty, as students and teachers alike face the consequences of these actions.
Article By Suzy Nyongesa.
