NAIROBI, Kenya – Teachers and education professionals across Kenya will now have year-round access to specialized training in assessment and evaluation, following the launch of a new Education Assessment Resource Centre by the Kenya National Examinations Council (KNEC).
The centre, officially unveiled today at the New Mitihani House in South C, Nairobi, aims to support the ongoing rollout of Competency-Based Education (CBE) by equipping teachers, examiners, and education officers with the skills needed to deliver and evaluate modern learning outcomes.
The move comes just days before learners sit for the inaugural Kenya Junior School Education Assessment under the competency-based curriculum (CBC), marking a major milestone in the country’s education reforms.
“This mission is to empower educators, examiners, researchers and policymakers with essential skills in assessment, psychometrics, competency-based education and research,” said KNEC CEO David Njeng’ere. “Through these efforts, the centre aims to foster excellence and innovation in educational evaluation.”
The facility is expected to host both online and in-person training, targeting not only Kenyan teachers but also participants from across the East African region.
Among the key focus areas are school-based assessments, psychometrics, test development, item writing, data analysis, quality assurance in marking, and digital tools in testing.
Unlike past KNEC training models, which were largely limited to selected examiners, the new centre opens access to a wider pool of education professionals, including classroom teachers and curriculum developers.
All courses will be practical and hands-on, allowing participants to work with real data and real-world assessment scenarios.
The training also introduces educators to key assessment tools such as learner portfolios, observation checklists, and rubrics—elements that have become increasingly important under CBE.
For instance, a five-day intensive course on competency-based assessments will take educators through the full cycle of assessment design, administration, and evaluation.
A more advanced 10-day online course will combine theory and practice, featuring interactive lectures, case studies, and group exercises.
“Examiners and assessment officers, and teachers involved in grading and examinations can attend,” Njeng’ere noted, adding that the centre is a strategic step toward ensuring the integrity and consistency of assessments across all learning institutions.
Basic Education Principal Secretary Julius Bitok presided over the launch, describing the initiative as a timely boost to teacher preparedness and a key enabler of Kenya’s digital and competency-based education goals.
The establishment of the centre follows recent policy shifts, including the allocation of Sh980 million to retrain teachers for the upcoming senior school rollout in 2026, and growing calls to fix assessment gaps in the CBC system.
KNEC hopes the centre will become a regional hub for assessment excellence, offering training to professionals from neighbouring countries and contributing to a more harmonised approach to education quality assurance in the region.
