Nyeri’s Kagumo High School surprised giants in Mt Kenya in the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) examination, even as top-performing schools increased the number of students who qualified for university.
Kagumo, with a mean of 9.574, saw 374 of its 392 candidates score C+ and above, attaining the threshold for university entry.
The school had 19 candidates with A plain, with 100 scoring A- and 112 with B+.
Kagumo School’s top candidate, Alfred Waititu, had 83 points.
“Ninety six per cent of our candidates will join university. We thank God for this achievement,” school principal, Silas Mwirigi, said.
Murang’a High School had a mean grade of 9.55. Teachers said 97.95 per cent of the 336 candidates scored C+ and above.
Eighteen students scored A, 67 had A- while 120 registered B+.
Meru School maintained its lead in the region with a mean of 9.52.
It recorded a mean of 8.9 in the 2021 national examination.
School head, Kiwara Kariuki, said 319 of the 325 candidates had C+ and above while 22 had grade A.
“We are happy because a majority of our students have university entry grades. We are also excited that one of our candidates who was sick during the examination had an A,” Mr Kariuki said.
In Laikipia County, Nanyuki High, which was one of the most sought-after schools in the country by the 2021 and 2022 Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) examination candidates, registered a mean of 8.89.
Though the number of candidates increased to 237 from 188 last year, there was a marked improvement on the mean.
The school had a mean of 8.739 in the 2021 examination.
Deputy Principal Gitonga King’ori said 217 of the 237 candidates scored C+ and above, translating to a 92 per cent pass.
Four candidates had A plain, up from two recorded last year.
The top candidate, Samuel Njuguna Njeri, had 83 points.
He was followed by Alex Mwangi Thenya who had 81.
Others with plain A were Samuel Mbugua and David Mungai Mwangi.
Grade A- also rose from 32 last year to 44 while 56 candidates scored B+, an increase of 24.
For the last two years, Nanyuki High School has attracted a huge number of applicants.
Last year alone, more than 156,000 KCPE exam candidates chose the school.
This year, the school was selected by 148,827 pupils, behind Kabianga High in Kericho County which had 153,078 applicants.
Nanyuki High offers technical subjects, including aviation, electricity and woodwork.
It also offers performing arts and film production.
Kabare Girls and Baricho Boys were the best schools in Kirinyaga County with mean scores of 8.7 and 8.6 respectively.
Kabare Girls had eight A and 28 A- in the examination. The best candidate, Kamau Mary Mukami, scored 83 points. Kabare Girls head, Lilian Muhuni, attributed the performance to hard work, discipline and prayers.
“We worked as a team. More than 100 girls have university entry grades,” Ms Muhuni said.
Baricho Boys produced four A and 39 A-. The top candidate, Muriuki Emmanuel Gachogu, had 83 points.
“We have been doing well in national examinations over the years. We have done it again due to the grace of God and hard work,” Baricho school Board of Management chairman James Karumba said.
Njiiri High School in Murang’a County had a mean of 8.5422. The school had 453 candidates.
Other top-performing schools were Christ the King Igembe Boys (8.26), Nkubu Boys (8.17), Miathene Boys (8.10), Maua Girls (6.96) and Burieruri Boys (6.36). BY DAILY NATION