I Was Number Last- Gladys Shollei On Academic Struggles In Her Early School Days
Shollei then recalled her own story of sitting for her Certificate of Primary Education (CPE) at Hill School, Eldoret where she emerged bottom of her class
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National Assembly Deputy Speaker, Gladys Shollei on Monday, January 8 opened up on her remarkable rise from being bottom of her class during her days at primary school.
The Uasin Gishu County Woman Representative was speaking at Moi Girls Eldoret during the release of the 2023 Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) results.
While making her remarks, she urged the 2023 KCSE candidates to embrace the results they have received, noting that they should not define who they are as human beings.
According to her, the candidates would face greater tests in their lives and have even greater chances to improve themselves.
Gladys Shollei with Teachers Service Commission (TSC) CEO Nancy Macharia during the release of the 2023 KCSE exam results at Moi Girls Eldoret on January 8, 2024. /GLADYS SHOLLEI
“You can define your circumstances, do not let this define you,” she stated.
Shollei then recalled her own story of sitting for her Certificate of Primary Education (CPE) at Hill School, Eldoret where she emerged bottom of her class, ruining her chances of joining secondary school.
However, this did not stop her as she had another window of opportunity to achieve her secondary education through her sister who was at Loreto Convent Matunda where the nuns allowed her to continue with her studies.
Amazingly, she wound up at the top of her class after sitting for her secondary school national examinations.
“I must tell my own story, when I did my CPE at Hill School Eldoret I was at the bottom of my class I had the lowest mark at Hill School in that year, totally at the bottom.
“I could not get a place in secondary school but because my sister was already at Loreto Convent Matunda, the nuns decided to allow me to go to the school just to keep us together. By the time I had finished at Loreto Matunda, I was top of my class,” Shollei added.
She further urged students who might not perform well to join the university to apply for Technical and Vocational Education and Training Authority (TVET) programs.
Additionally, the legislator urged the Ministry of Education to make the examining system to be an accommodating programme rather than an elimination program.
In the 2023 KCSE examinations, 899,453 students sat for the exams, an increase from 881,416 candidates who took the exams in 2022.
Education Cabinet Secretary (CS) Ezekiel Machogu revealed that an astonishingly high number of candidates who scored the lowest grade of E were recorded at 48,174, which is more than the 1,216 candidates, representing 0.14 per cent, who got straight As in 2023 the highest grade in the exams.
"I order the directorate of quality assurance to work with field officers and teachers to investigate these E Grade cases in each county of the country and submit a report to me within one month for further action," he said while releasing the results.
The number of candidates who attained the minimum university entry qualification (Grade C+ and above) was 201,133 (22.27%) in the year 2023 KCSE Examination compared to 173,345 (19.62%) in the year 2022.
