Bright but locked out: Vulnerable learners struggling to join Senior Schools

As admission deadlines for Grade 10 students close, the futures of bright learners hang in the balance.

Stories of thousands of bright students stand as a stark reminder that passing exams and earning placement is only half the journey, the real test begins after the results are released.

One week after admission into senior secondary schools officially kicked off, a growing number of learners from vulnerable households remain stranded at home.

Majority are unable to report despite passing the Kenya Junior School Education Assessment (KJSEA) and securing placement in some of the country’s most competitive schools.

Stories of bright learners blocked by school fees, uniforms and shopping lists are emerging, exposing the harsh reality behind Kenya’s push for 100 per cent transition.

For 16-year-old Albina Nekesa Swaka, the joy of scoring 65 points in KJSEA and earning placement to Butere Girls High School has quickly turned into despair.

The total cost of joining the national school, Sh53,550 in fees and additional shopping requirements, now stands firmly between her and her dream of pursuing the STEM pathway.

“We have tried all scholarship programmes without success. Our hope is now on the future,” Nekesa said quietly, fighting back tears.

Her mother, Melisa Were, survives on irregular manual jobs, earning about Sh200 on days she is lucky.

“We live hand to mouth from the meagre earnings I get from cleaning. It is not even guaranteed you will get work the following day. Every day we take life as it comes,” she said.

Langata Primary School headteacher Pamela Obiero said the school had exhausted all options to support the learner.

“We have assisted her throughout primary and junior secondary, but our capacity is now stretched. We appeal to any well-wisher to stand in the gap and help this girl realise her potential,” she said.

A similar story is from Mitchele Adhiambo Otieno from Heidemarie Mathare North Primary School.

The girl scored an impressive 68 points and was placed at Limuru Girls High School, but her chances of reporting are fading fast.

“She comes from a single-parent household. The mother currently stays with her sister in Eastleigh, working as a mama fua,” a village elder said, noting that the family has no means to raise the required fees.

Perhaps the most distressing case is that of John Mwalili, who scored 64 points and was placed at Alliance High School.

After reporting with his father last Wednesday, he was turned away for lack of fees. Since then, the teenager has been spending his days at Kware dumpsite, scavenging for food remains to help his family survive.

“I reported to Alliance High with my father, but we were sent away. Now I am fending for myself here at the dumpsite. No one in the elected leadership has opened a door for me,” Mwalili said.

In another Nairobi household, Martha Wanjiru is battling the fear that her hard work may go to waste.

The 16-year-old scored 68 points, topped her class and secured a place at Alliance Girls High School, a dream institution she had admired for years.

Yet, as the final reporting deadline of Friday, January 16 approaches, the likelihood of her remaining at home is increasing.

“This is very painful. I worked hard because I believed education would change my life,” Wanjiru said.

Her father, Daniel Muchoki, a small-scale trader at Gikomba Market, said financial struggles had overwhelmed the family.

“I have been pushing myself, but business has been very difficult. I was once robbed while servicing a loan, which made things worse. I keep hoping things will improve so I can take care of my family,” he said emotionally.

In Mwingi, another bright girl, Niserah Kiambi Mbuvi, has also failed to settle into senior school. Despite scoring 66 points (EE2) and securing a place at Muthale Girls Secondary School, she was turned away after reporting with only Sh2,000 against a required Sh53,000.

Niserah missed out on the Elimu Scholarship after evaluators reportedly assumed she came from a well-off family because she attended a private primary school, unaware that she had been learning on a scholarship.

Her mother, Mary Mathuva, a single parent, said her situation has been worsened by a past cobra bite injury that left her unable to work effectively.

“I want my child to learn, but I cannot raise this money,” she said. Ochieng Ismael Omondi, and Ochieng Susan Atieno former student at Tawabu primary school scored 39 points and 42 points respectively. They are admitted at Mwangaza secondary 

Education expert Ouko Muthoni warn that without urgent intervention, Kenya risks losing some of its brightest minds to poverty.

"The situation highlights the urgent need for flexible scholarship systems, faster bursary disbursement and coordinated community support to ensure that vulnerable but deserving learners are not locked out of school simply because they are poor," she said.