Kenyatta University has outperformed the University of Nairobi (UoN) for the second consecutive year in the latest Times Higher Education World University Rankings, published on Thursday, October 9.

• Kenyatta University and UoN were ranked globally in the 1000 to 1500 band, a drop from their previous ranking of 500 to 1000.
• The rankings assessed 2,191 institutions from 115 countries, based on education quality and societal contribution.
• Locally, the top four institutions were Kenyatta University, followed by UoN, Egerton University, and Jaramogi Oginga Odinga University of Science and Technology.
• Globally, the University of Oxford and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology secured the first and second positions, respectively.

A new petition by the Computer Science Teachers Association of Kenya (CSTAK) was tabled in the National Assembly on Thursday, October 9, urging urgent policy reforms to boost STEM education in Kenyan schools and address declining uptake.

• The petition warns that a reliance on single introductory coding tools in the Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC) is inadequate for advanced disciplines like AI and data science, and highlights unequal funding for STEM compared to co-curricular activities.
• Deputy Speaker Gladys Boss emphasized the petition's crucial nature for Kenya's future competitiveness, stating the nation risks falling behind in the Fourth Industrial Revolution without intervention.
• A recent report by Zizi Afrique Foundation and Usawa Agenda revealed that only 21% of teachers in public junior secondary schools are trained for STEM subjects, and 35% of schools lack a single STEM teacher.

Over 3,000 learners from 15 schools in Kisumu West Constituency received psychosocial support ahead of national exams, an initiative launched by the State Department for Children Services and the Child Welfare Society of Kenya (CWSK).

• The program, part of a broader mentorship strategy, offered counselling sessions to students from 10 secondary and five primary schools.
• Carren Ageng’o, Principal Secretary for Children Services, emphasized building resilience and life skills for academic and personal success.
• The initiative coincided with Mazingira Day, involving the donation of food and non-food items, and fruit tree planting in line with President William Ruto's 15-billion-tree campaign.
• Separately, 47 day secondary schools in Siaya County with 16,373 students received food supplies under a pilot school feeding program.