Empowering Education Through Inclusion
By Ms. Maureen Obare
“Nothing about us without us” perfectly captures the importance of involving participants in the context of education, especially in Kenya and Africa at large. This belief highlights the decisive role of public participation. Over the past two weeks, the proposed Hekima University (PHU) has been intensely engaged in an assessment exercise to gain a clearer understanding of the needs of various stakeholders that is, current Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) candidates, university students, and parents. This effort aims to better address their needs and aspirations regarding higher education in the country.
These exercises have engaged KCSE candidates from a diverse array of secondary schools, including national, extra-county, county, sub-county, and private institutions. Their input is invaluable in shaping our understanding of their needs and aspirations for higher education, particularly in the areas of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM), as well as Business-informed bachelor’s programs that our university plans to offer.
We have conducted focus group discussions with current university students, drawing participants from a range of disciplines, including Quantity Surveying, Communications, Construction Management, Nursing, Applied Statistics, Business Management, Marketing, and Computer Science. These students represented both private and public universities, such as Strathmore University, the University of Nairobi, the Technical University of Kenya (TUK), and Kenyatta University. Their experiences and perspectives have been enriching, providing critical insights that are helping us refine our academic offerings to empower the region through higher education.
The engagement with these diverse groups has been nothing short of enlightening. Every story shared and every perspective offered is contributing to a deeper understanding of the educational needs in our country and the Eastern Africa region. This collaborative approach is skewed towards ensuring that the programs we develop are not only relevant but also responsive to the real challenges and opportunities faced by students, parents, and educators across Kenya and Africa.
As part of the exercise, we also engaged parents, and their input was incredibly insightful. Beyond focusing on academics, they emphasized the importance of value-based education and stressed the need to produce professionals who can excel and make an impact anywhere in the world.
