The 2018 Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) summary showed a clear rise in high scores, with 12,273 pupils scoring 401 marks and above compared with 9,846 in 2017.
That figure represented 1.17 percent of the 1,060,711 candidates who sat the exam last month, up from 0.99 percent a year earlier. The best candidate in 2018 scored 453 marks, falling two marks short of the 2017 record of 455.
The Kenya National Examinations Council said the improvement marked a third straight year of better performance. Education Cabinet Secretary Amina Mohamed linked the trend to teachers’ work and to the tougher anti-cheating measures introduced in 2016.
Performance by subject remained mixed. Female candidates did better in English, Kiswahili and Kenya Sign Language, while male candidates posted stronger results in Mathematics, Science, Social Studies and Religious Education.
The results also showed that 228,414 pupils, or 21.7 percent of all candidates, scored between 301 and 400 marks, an increase of 11,107 from 2017. More than half of the candidates, 54.66 percent, fell in the 201 to 300 mark range.
Another 234,573 pupils scored between 101 and 200 marks, equal to 22.3 percent of the total, down from 23.59 percent in 2017. Those who scored between zero and 100 dropped to 2,177, compared with 2,360 in 2017 and 6,747 in 2016.
The 2018 exam also included 2,495 candidates with special needs, up from 2,038 the previous year. The highest candidate in that category scored 446 marks, improving from 426 in 2017.
Mohamed said every pupil would get a Form One place under the 100 percent transition policy, adding that the ministry had already mapped vacancies in schools. She said the government was ready to absorb more learners under the Free Day Secondary Education programme.
Form One selection was scheduled to begin on December 3, with placement results to be communicated before Christmas.
The exam was supervised by 183,497 contracted professionals, among them 27,354 supervisors, 65,107 invigilators, 54,322 security officers, 27,161 centre managers and 918 examination management directors.
