Building Strong Foundations: A School Leader’s Perspectives

Stephen Kerore's Journey

Stephen Nyamora Kerore, Head of Institution at Kierira Primary and Junior School in Nyamira County, is an educator who finds great joy and satisfaction in providing young children with the critical foundational skills and starting them off on the right path. Stephen, who has over 20 years of teaching experience, including eight years in leadership, enjoys witnessing the growth of his students. "I get highly elated when I see teachers' efforts to develop learners’ foundational skills right from elementary level bear fruit, especially for those requiring support through Individualised Education Programmes (IEPs)," he shares.

The International Literacy Day (ILD) commemorated on 8 September, holds particular significance for Stephen as it reminds him of literacy’s transformative power and offers a moment to reflect on literacy's role as a cornerstone for learning and development. Stephen emphasises the importance of ensuring effective literacy and numeracy teaching at his school. “At Kierira School, we focus on creating an engaging learning environment, using interactive teaching methods and fostering a reading culture. Tailored instruction through IEPs helps meet each learner's specific needs, while collaborative learning strengthens peer support,” he says.

Stephen also stresses the importance of professional development for both school leaders and teachers in improving literacy outcomes. He believes that equipping teachers with the latest strategies, methodologies, and research-based approaches is essential to addressing the diverse needs of learners. He further states that professional development enhances and promotes engagement and collaboration among teachers as they are avenues for sharing the best classroom literacy and numerary instruction practices, which lead to formation of clusters that can support members, especially the newly employed teachers.

Challenges to Address; Opportunities to Tap Into

Stephen acknowledges that numerous bottlenecks halt or slow down the pace at which learners acquire these most vital educational life ingredients. Many learners, particularly in elementary grades, struggle due to poor nutrition, which research shows is critical for brain development. Poverty and family vulnerabilities such as orphanhood contribute to children not receiving adequate nutrition, leading to truancy and absenteeism. "Inadequate teaching and learning materials, resulting in high student-to-textbook ratios, and low parental involvement due to parents' low education levels are other major issues we face,” he notes.

Despite these challenges, Stephen sees opportunities for creativity in finding solutions. His school maximises the use of available resources and encourages community support for literacy initiatives. For example, the school has implemented a feeding programme, ‘Uji (porridge) Initiative’ for early years and a lunch programme for older students, supported by parents. These programmes aim to address nutritional deficiencies and improve attendance, though Stephen stresses that more support is needed, particularly through Parental Engagement and Empowerment (PEE) sessions. He also highlights the importance of teacher creativity in overcoming the lack of teaching materials and appropriate infrastructure. "We don’t have a library; we only have a bookstore which cannot facilitate library lessons. In this instance learners are guided to read from the classroom including sharing of the available literacy materials thereby enhancing peer reading,” he adds.

Staying Relevant in the Field of Education

Stephen advises fellow school leaders to embrace continuous teacher professional development (TPD) to ensure that educators stay relevant in the ever-evolving field of education, particularly in meeting the needs of 21st-century learners. “I also encourage school leaders to reap from the instructional leadership role through which they can directly confront the challenges of imparting foundational skills hence addressing them from first-hand experience. This will be very effective in giving practical support to the teachers in terms of resource allocation and eventual encouragement through motivation as they shall be leading by example,” he states.

A Shared Commitment

As we reflect on the recently held International Literacy Day, it is vital to reaffirm our commitment to supporting educators in building these foundational skills. Doing so ensures that we give learners across the world an opportunity to experience this fundamental human right to think critically, engage in society, and thrive in an increasingly complex and rapidly changing world. By supporting literacy and numeracy education, we give children the opportunity to enjoy a brighter, more progressive future.