By the end of this academic year, Kenya’s Grade 9 learners will transition into Senior School (Grades 10–12), marking the final stage of basic education under the Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC). This pioneer CBC cohort has a new placement process that differs greatly from the old 8-4-4 system. Parents, teachers, and education stakeholders are keen to understand how students will be placed into Grade 10 come January 2026, and how to make the process smoother. Technology is playing a vital role in this transition – notably Kurasa, an education platform tailored for CBC Pathways. This article breaks down the Grade 9 to 10 placement process, explains the pathways and criteria, and shows how Kurasa is simplifying school selection, progress tracking, and overall CBC implementation for all involved.
Students in a Kenyan classroom actively participating in a lesson. The CBC emphasizes interactive, learner-centered education that builds 21st-century skills like collaboration and critical thinking.
Understanding the CBC Placement Process for Grade 9 to 10
Under CBC, placement into senior secondary school is based on a holistic assessment of each learner’s performance and interests – not just one exam. In Grade 9 (the final year of Junior Secondary), students will sit for the Kenya Junior Secondary Education Assessment (KJSEA), a national exam in November. This KJSEA exam contributes 60% of a student’s final placement score, combined with earlier assessments. Specifically, the Ministry of Education and KNEC have outlined that a learner’s final score for placement will be calculated as follows
- 20% from the Grade 6 KPSEA (Kenya Primary School Education Assessment) results – the exit exam from primary school.
- 20% from School-Based Assessments (SBA) during Grades 7 and 8 – these are projects, practicals, and theory assessments done in school
- 60% from the Grade 9 KJSEA exam – the first national junior secondary exam
Using this combined score, placement will be based on pathways rather than the old ranking of schools. Senior Secondary in CBC offers three broad pathways that learners can specialize in during Grades 10–12
- Arts and Sports Science – focusing on creative arts, music, theater, visual arts, and sports-related studies.
- Social Sciences – focusing on humanities, business studies, languages, and social studies.
- STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics) – focusing on pure and applied sciences, technical studies, and engineering subjects.
Each pathway contains specific tracks and subjects. For example, the STEM pathway is divided into tracks like Pure Sciences, Applied Sciences, and Technical studies. The Arts and Sports pathway splits into an Arts track (e.g. fine arts, performing arts) and a Sports Science track. Social Sciences includes tracks for Humanities & Business and for Languages & Literature. According to the education ministry, roughly 60% of students are expected to pursue STEM, 25% Social Sciences, and 15% Arts/Sports, based on interests and performance nationwide.
Selection Criteria: During the final year of JSS, students indicate their preferred pathway for senior school. Placement is then guided by each student’s strengths and exam performance in relevant areas, as well as their expressed interests. For instance, learners who excel in Mathematics and Sciences will likely be steered into the STEM pathway, while others may be placed in Social Science or Arts pathways depending on where their talents lie. The government has noted that unlike in the past where top KCPE exam scorers simply chose famous national schools, “this time students will think about their pathway – after identifying their pathway and where it is offered, they will think about the schools”. In practice, this means a student passionate about fine arts might choose the Arts track and be placed in a school that excels in that area, whereas a budding engineer will join a school with strong STEM facilities.
Pathway Placement and School Allocation: Because schools are being redefined by the subjects and facilities they offer rather than the old national/county labels, each senior secondary school will offer one or more pathways. Some well-equipped schools (formerly national schools) may offer all three pathways, while others might specialize in one or two due to resource constraints. Every learner will be assigned to a school that offers their chosen pathway, and performance in the KJSEA and SBAs will determine who qualifies for highly demanded schools or tracks if there are capacity limits. Importantly, placement also considers proximity and equity – the CBC policy aims to place students in schools close to their home communities where possible. This approach mirrors the junior secondary placement (Grades 7–9) which kept learners in local primary schools, to avoid the old system’s scenario of students traveling across the country for Form One. Inclusivity is also emphasized, with plans to eliminate former biases like single-gender school restrictions; students will be free to attend available schools regardless of gender, as long as the school offers their desired pathway.
Another innovative aspect is that student interest and aptitude surveys will inform placement. KNEC plans to administer questionnaires for Grade 9 learners to record their interests, talents, and personality. This ensures that a student with a special talent (say in athletics or music) is noted and can be placed into a school that can nurture that talent. In short, the placement process is a blend of academic performance, student preference, and practical considerations like school capacity and location. It’s a complex process, but one designed to “ensure learners receive quality education while remaining close to their families and communities”
How Kurasa Simplifies School Selection and Placement
For students, parents, and educators, the new placement system can seem daunting – multiple assessment scores, new pathways, and unfamiliar criteria. Kurasa, an innovative EdTech platform designed around CBC, is helping simplify this process on several fronts. Kurasa functions as an integrated digital system for managing teaching, learning, and assessments, which directly addresses some challenges of the CBC transition
Streamlining Assessments: One key way Kurasa supports the placement process is by making it easy to record and track all those SBA scores and assessments that count toward placement. Instead of teachers manually compiling three years’ worth of assessment data, they can input assessments into Kurasa in real-time. The platform provides instant feedback and real-time insights into student performance, enabling teachers to identify strengths and weaknesses quickly. This means no performance data is lost or overlooked. When it’s time to combine scores for placement, both students and teachers have a clear record of the learner’s achievements on Kurasa. The CEO of Kurasa, William Nguru, noted that they identified “a need for integrated digital solutions that support the CBC, particularly in formative assessments and lesson planning”
– Kurasa was built to fill this need by aligning closely with CBC’s continuous assessment model. By digitizing formative assessments, Kurasa ensures that the information needed for Grade 10 placement is organized and readily available at the click of a button, saving educators from last-minute scrambles to gather scores.
Guiding Pathway Selection: Kurasa also aids in the school selection aspect by highlighting each student’s learning profile. Because the platform tracks performance in various subjects and even specific competencies, it can reveal patterns – for example, a student might consistently excel in creative arts projects or perhaps shows strong analytical skills in science. Such insights help teachers and counselors advice students on which pathway might suit them best. Instead of relying on hunches, educators can use Kurasa’s data analytics (which include performance trends and competency mastery) to have informed conversations with students and parents about senior school choices. The platform essentially makes the student’s strengths and interests more visible. As a result, a student can be more confident in selecting, say, the Arts and Sports pathway because their Kurasa records show a clear aptitude in music and drama, or choose STEM knowing their math/science competency scores are high. This data-driven guidance simplifies decision-making for families and ensures learners choose paths aligned with their abilities. In the words of one report, Kurasa’s commitment to data-driven decision-making “aligns seamlessly with the demands and competencies of the CBC”, ensuring learners get a targeted educational experience
Less Paperwork, More Clarity: For school administrators, Kurasa significantly reduces the administrative burden in the placement transition. The platform can automatically generate reports of each learner’s assessment scores over Grades 7, 8, and 9, which can be shared with the Ministry or used to double-check placement data. This automation minimizes human errors in tallying scores and frees up teachers’ time. In fact, in a recent impact study, 86% of teachers reported spending less time on routine tasks like record-keeping when using Kurasa. With mundane tasks streamlined, teachers and principals can focus on supporting students through the selection process – for example, organizing informational sessions about pathway options or helping students fill out their pathway preference forms – rather than pushing papers. For the education ministry and placement officers, having standardized, digitally collected assessment data from systems like Kurasa can make the overall placement exercise smoother and more credible. The platform effectively becomes a one-stop portfolio for each student’s CBC journey, simplifying the work of matching the right student to the right school.
Helping Parents Track Performance and Placement Options
For parents, CBC’s continuous assessment approach can be a big adjustment, especially those used to the single national exam (KCPE) determining high school admission. Under CBC, parents need to stay involved throughout the year – and this is where Kurasa truly shines. Kurasa empowers parents with real-time information about their child’s academic performance and progress. The platform is accessible to parents via a mobile app or web portal, where they can log in and see updates on assessments, attendance, and even teacher feedback. Kurasa provides “instant updates and comprehensive reports directly to your device, allowing you to monitor your child’s academic growth in real-time”. Instead of waiting for end-of-term report cards, a parent can know weekly or even daily how their child is doing in various subjects.
This level of insight is incredibly useful as Grade 9 learners prepare for placement. If a parent sees via Kurasa that their child is consistently strong in, say, languages and social studies but struggling in physics, it can guide discussions at home about suitable senior school pathways. The parent might encourage the child to consider the Social Sciences pathway in senior secondary, where those strengths will shine, rather than pushing them toward a heavily science-oriented path. Likewise, if a child shows a sudden interest or improvement in a new area – for example, they join a school club for coding or art and their Kurasa assessment reflects growing skill – parents will catch that trend and can nurture it. Essentially, Kurasa makes sure parents “aren’t just spectators but active participants in their child’s educational journey”, as the platform advertises.
Beyond academic scores, Kurasa also improves communication between parents and teachers. Through the platform, teachers can send messages or notes about a student’s progress or needs, and parents can respond or ask questions. This open channel means parents are well-informed about how their child is adapting to the CBC curriculum and what decisions lie ahead. Indeed, 71% of teachers surveyed observed increased parental engagement after adopting Kurasa, as the tool helped “bridge the gap between home and school” by enabling real-time sharing of student progress.When it comes time to choose a senior school or pathway, these engaged parents are not caught off guard – they understand the placement criteria and have been tracking their child’s preparedness all along. They can log into Kurasa and see, for example, the aggregate score (20% + 20% + 60%) that their child has accumulated toward placement, which demystifies the process. Instead of anxiously guessing whether their child will qualify for a certain school, parents have a clearer picture of the child’s performance relative to the requirements. If there are official instructions or forms for selecting preferred schools/pathways, schools can even distribute and collect them via Kurasa, ensuring no child misses the chance to make their choices known. In sum, Kurasa keeps parents in the loop at every step: from understanding how each test and project contributes to the final placement, to knowing what options are available for their child. This level of transparency and involvement helps reduce the stress and uncertainty for families as the Grade 9 transition approaches.
Benefits of Using Kurasa for Educators in Managing CBC
For teachers and school administrators, Kurasa has proven to be a game-changer in managing the CBC curriculum and ensuring smooth student progression. Educators are at the heart of CBC implementation – they must conduct frequent assessments, track individual competencies, remediate learning gaps, and report on each learner’s growth. Doing all this manually for dozens of students is extremely labor-intensive. Kurasa was developed precisely to ease this load by “empowering teachers to easily perform classroom curriculum tasks”, thereby increasing their efficiency. The platform offers a suite of features that make day-to-day teaching and long-term student tracking much easier:
- Real-Time Assessments & Feedback: Teachers can create or upload assessment tasks on Kurasa (quizzes, assignments, projects) and record results immediately. The system gives instant feedback and analyzes results, so a teacher can quickly see which competencies a student has mastered and where they are struggling. This immediacy is crucial in CBC, where identifying and addressing learning gaps promptly is part of the pedagogy. If a large portion of the class scores low in a particular skill, Kurasa’s data analytics will highlight that, prompting the teacher to adjust their approach or review that topic before it’s too late Over 95% of teachers reported that Kurasa improved their teaching practices, allowing better lesson planning and helping them pinpoint weak areas in students’ understanding
- Data-Driven Insights for Student Progression: Kurasa tracks each student’s performance over time and compiles this into easy-to-read analytics. Teachers and school heads can view trend lines, competency charts, and comparative reports. These insights inform decisions like which students need extra coaching, which learners might be ready for advanced material, or what kind of differentiated instruction to apply. It ensures no student falls through the cracks – as teachers can see if someone’s performance is consistently dipping and intervene early. According to a study by 60 Decibels, 87% of teachers using Kurasa have observed improvements in their students’ academic performance, partly because the platform helped them give more targeted attention where needed. By the time students reach Grade 9, educators have a rich profile of their academic journey, which is invaluable for writing recommendations or advising on pathways.
- Streamlined Record-Keeping and Reporting: Kurasa significantly cuts down the paperwork for educators. It automatically aggregates scores, generates report cards, and even produces the summaries needed for each learner. As noted earlier, teachers spend less time doing manual tallying and more time on teaching or mentoring. Administrative tasks like tracking attendance, recording project grades, or preparing end-of-term reports can all be done within Kurasa with a few clicks. This is a huge benefit when managing CBC’s continuous assessment regime. In practice, it means a Grade 9 teacher can quickly produce each student’s full Grade 7-9 assessment history to attach with placement info, without sifting through piles of paper. One educator feedback highlighted that Kurasa “introduced enhanced work efficiency” – 67% of teachers said it saved them significant time, and many used that saved time to create better learning experiences or even enjoy a better work-life balance.
- Enhanced Collaboration and Resource Sharing: Kurasa isn’t just an assessment tool; it also provides a repository of teaching materials and lesson plans aligned with CBC, plus a communication channel with parents and other teachers. For example, a teacher can access CBC-aligned lesson plans on Kurasa’s library, saving planning time and ensuring they cover the required competencies. They can also share students’ work portfolios easily with the next teacher or with school administrators. This continuity helps in student progression – as learners move from one grade to the next, the incoming teacher can review their Kurasa profile to understand their strengths and areas of need right away. School principals benefit from a dashboard view of all classes, making it easier to monitor overall performance and allocate resources or support where necessary. Kurasa effectively creates a more connected, informed teaching community within a school.
All these benefits explain why schools are rapidly adopting the platform. As of late 2024, over 52,000 learners and 2,400 teachers were actively using Kurasa. Many early adopters were private schools, but public schools have increasingly come on board, especially after a landmark partnership with the Kenya Primary Schools Heads Association (KEPSHA) helped roll it out in public institutions.The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive: 94% of teachers said Kurasa has improved their quality of life, with 73% reporting it “very much improved”.When teachers are less bogged down by clerical work and have better tools to track student growth, they can focus on what matters – facilitating learning. This ultimately means students get a richer education, which translates to better preparedness when facing important milestones like the Grade 9 assessments and the transition to senior school. One teacher noted that with Kurasa, they could spend more time with students in need and ensure no one is left behind, which is exactly the ethos of CBC.
Technology’s Role in Improving CBC Implementation: Stakeholder Insights
Kenya’s education stakeholders – from ministry officials to school leaders and researchers – recognize that technology is critical in overcoming the challenges of CBC implementation. The introduction of CBC brought to light several hurdles, including heavy teacher workload, the need for continuous assessments, and initially low parental understanding of the new system. Digital tools like Kurasa are increasingly seen as essential in addressing these issues. In fact, a Presidential Working Party on Education Reform identified issues such as low parental engagement and teacher burnout, and platforms like Kurasa have directly targeted these, providing solutions that manual methods could not.
There is strong support from the government to integrate technology in schools. The Ministry of Education, in partnership with global organizations, launched the DigiSchool Project to equip classrooms with tablets and internet connectivity.This provided the infrastructure for EdTech tools to thrive. At a “Teching Up CBC” conference organized by Kurasa and KICD in 2023, key stakeholders gathered to discuss how EdTech can enhance CBC delivery.The event underscored that collaboration between curriculum developers (KICD) and technology providers is vital. Dr. Joseph Wambua of KICD emphasized aligning curriculum content, assessments, pedagogy, and resources – highlighting that teachers should embrace their role as facilitators and leverage tools available to maximize student potential. Such public-private partnerships indicate a shared commitment to making CBC succeed through innovation.
Education experts point out that homegrown EdTech innovations are “pivotal in improving educational outcomes” under CBC. For example, Kenyan EdTech companies have enabled teachers to track student progress in ways that were not possible before at scale. By providing personalized learning experiences and data-driven interventions, these technologies ensure that the curriculum’s competency goals are met. A clear testament to technology’s positive impact is seen in the increased parental involvement noted earlier – an area that was historically challenging. Now, many parents have become more engaged with schools thanks to digital communication and monitoring tools, which aligns with CBC’s emphasis on a holistic, community-supported education.
Moreover, stakeholders see an added bonus of platforms like Kurasa: policy feedback and planning. With so much data being collected on student performance and skill acquisition, the education ministry and curriculum developers can analyze trends to inform future decisions. For instance, if nationwide Kurasa data (anonymized and aggregated) showed that a significant number of students struggle in a particular competency, it could signal the need to adjust the curriculum or provide extra teacher training in that area. Thus, technology not only supports day-to-day teaching but also provides a feedback loop to improve the education system itself
In the words of one school leader, the adoption of Kurasa and similar platforms is “propelling education forward in alignment with the CBC”, acting as a catalyst for change in classrooms across Kenya. The fact that Kurasa was among the 12 Kenyan EdTech startups selected for a MasterCard Foundation EdTech Fellowship in 2024 also indicates confidence from the broader education community and investors that these solutions are integral to CBC’s success. The journey hasn’t been without challenges – initial resistance or technophobia in some educators had to be overcome with training and support. But as teachers see the benefits and as students thrive, the skepticism is fading. Teachers have reported increased confidence in their teaching abilities (83% noted a significant boost in confidence with Kurasa usage), which ultimately benefits learners.
Conclusion
The new CBC senior school placement system represents a transformative moment in Kenya’s education landscape. It shifts focus from one-off exams to a comprehensive view of each learner’s journey, talents, and potential. While this transition brings complexities in placement criteria and decision-making, it also brings a more personalized and equitable approach to education. Tools like Kurasa are proving to be invaluable allies in this transition. They demystify the process for parents by providing clarity on performance and options, empower students and teachers with data to make informed pathway choices, and lighten the load on educators so they can focus on guiding learners. As we approach January 2026 with the first CBC cohort set to join Grade 10, stakeholders can take comfort in the fact that technology has made the journey more transparent and manageable.
In practice, a teacher using Kurasa can ensure that every SBA score is accounted for and every student gets timely support, a parent can log in and understand how their child is progressing toward the next milestone, and a student can explore their interests with confidence that their efforts will be recognized in placement. Education Principal Secretary Dr. Belio Kipsang noted that with CBC, learners will now be looking for schools “based on their pathways” rather than chasing school prestige – A profound change in mindset. Kurasa and similar innovations are there to guide that mindset shift, making sure each learner finds their rightful place in senior secondary where they can flourish. As CBC implementation continues to evolve, the partnership between educational vision and technology will remain key. The early results are promising: better student outcomes, more engaged parents, and less overworked teachers. With continued collaboration among all stakeholders, Kenya’s bold education overhaul can achieve its goal of nurturing every child’s potential, supported by data and compassion. The CBC journey from Grade 9 to Grade 10 is just the start of a new era – and with platforms like Kurasa, it’s a journey everyone can navigate with confidence and clarity.
