CBE - Muiri-ini Senior School

COMPETENCE BASED EDUCATION (CBE)

Muiri-ini Senior School is ready and equipped for the Competency-Based Education (CBE). This curriculum prioritizes mastery of specific skills over time-based learning, focusing on real-world performance and practical application.

It emphasizes core competencies like critical thinking, communication, and digital literacy, while moving away from routine memorization. Students can progress at their own pace, and the curriculum includes personalized learning paths and a focus on character development.

KEY COMPONENTS

Focus on competencies: The curriculum is built around specific, predetermined competencies rather than just knowledge acquisition.
Core competencies: Essential skills developed across all subjects include communication, collaboration, critical thinking, problem-solving, creativity, citizenship, digital literacy, and self-efficacy.
Values: Foundational values are integrated, such as love, responsibility, respect, unity, peace, patriotism, and social justice.
Practical application: The curriculum aims to make learning relevant to real-life situations and future careers.
Continuous assessment: Assessment is ongoing and focuses on practical demonstration of skills and competencies.

Why the Competency-Based Curriculum?

The establishment of the Competency-Based Curriculum arose from the need to update and enhance Kenya’s education system. The education sector saw that it was equally important to promote knowledge application as it was to promote its acquisition. The implementation of the CBE emphasizes what learners are expected to do rather than what they were expected to know. E.g., it is not enough that students know the process of growing a plant. Instead, learners are tasked with sprouting a plant from a bean. This allows them the opportunity to apply the knowledge acquired to real-life situations.

THE 7 CORE COMPETENCIES OF THE CBC

Communication and collaboration: Language is a tool we use to exchange and convey information with others. Under this curriculum, our learners are able to acquire the skill and ability to exchange with others’ thoughts, information and behaviour. The CBC necessitates for collaboration in a number of learning activities. Work can be done in pairs or groups if not the entire class. This encourages learners to speak to one another and be cooperative in order to achieve a common goal.
Critical thinking and problem solving: One of the key outcomes of a quality education is a learner’s ability to utilise the following critical thinking skills: problem-solving, making judgements and reasoning. This skill is important as it allows learners to constantly evolve their thinking and adapt in the future.
Imagination and creativity: A child’s mind is rather creative and imaginative in their formative years. The Competency-Based Curriculum capitalises on that aptitude. It encourages learners to convert what is in their imagination into creative materials. It also motivates learners to seek out new ideas and turn them into reality.
Citizenship: A community is a group of people who share a common belief or identity. This shared identity is often anchored by subcommunities. The more the group of people in this community grows, the more set of values they share. Once they are governed by a political, economic, social and religious framework, they become citizens. They experience a sense of belonging and patriotism – wanting to uphold what is right and condemn wrong behaviour. The CBC encourages learners to understand their role as members of a larger community.
Learning to learn: Learning is a never-ending endeavour. Acquiring new information allows one to become a better decision maker and problem solver. The Competency-Based Curriculum encourages our teachers to teach learners how to think and not what to think, which means learners will develop an inclination to seek new information, even outside the confines of the school system.
Self-efficacy: This competency ensures that learners are capable of independently completing tasks successfully. This means that a learner can take a difficult task and break it down into its smaller components for better understanding without rely heavily on their teacher. The by-product of this skill is that the learner demonstrates a high self-esteem and increased confidence.
Digital literacy: One advantage the current generation enjoys is being digitally savvy. Children are able to navigate their way on digital devices with ease. Digital literacy is measured by learner’s ability to safely and cleverly use hardware and software technology to access information. In a world where tech becomes quickly obsolete, learners who are prepared for change adapt quicker.