WHY TWO-MONTH SCHOOL HOLIDAY POSES A DILEMMA FOR PARENTS

Students arrive in Eldoret town on April 6, 2016 to catch a bus to their homes following closing of schools for the holiday season. Parents have welcomed school holidays with mixed reactions. PHOTO | JARED NYATAYA | NATION MEDIA GROUP 

By SUNDAY NATION TEAM

The thought of school holidays, especially a long one away from books, uniform and tight schedules, might be what every pupil dreams of.

But for some parents, this poses a big challenge and they are struggling to come up with innovative ways to keep their children positively engaged ahead of the extended December holidays, which will last 68 days.

Given that children will stay at home unsupervised, some working parents are concerned that they may be recruited into crime, engage in illicit sex, engage in drug abuse.

Parents also fear that they will get financially overwhelmed by the youngsters’ needs.

Mr Daniel Ongwenyi, a pharmacist in Kisii town, says that the government should consider refunding parents part of the money they paid as fees since schools are closing much earlier.

“My budget was tailored to ensure their school fees and shopping was done for the duration of third term,” the father of four told the Sunday Nation.

The new school terms were introduced in May by Education Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i.

Equally apprehensive of the rough economic times ahead is David Kipchumba, a farmer at Ziwa in Moiben, Uasin Gishu County.

“We have sold our produce (maize and beans) so that we take them to school. If they close for two months, it means that we will have to look for money to sustain them,” Mr Kipchumba says.

Another parent in Isiolo says the drought that is currently wreaking havoc in his county means he has to live with his children in the city.

Mr Deribo Jaldesa, a guard, says the long holiday will put a great financial strain on him because the drought at their rural home in Garfasa means he cannot send his four children there to herd goats or live with their grandparents as has been the norm.

Isiolo is one of the seven counties that are being ravaged by drought, a situation that has put the lives of 1.3 million people at risk.

Other affected counties, according to Devolution Cabinet Secretary Mwangi Kiunjuri, are Kilifi, Kwale, Garissa, Wajir, Mandera and Samburu.

Because some schools in those areas offer meals, parents will now be required to provide more meals per day for their children.

But another parent in Isiolo is more worried about the Al-Shabaab recruitment ring operating in the area, and he fears that his children may be tempted to visit video dens that sometimes air extremist content.

MEASURES TAKEN
Mr Abduba Mamo, a father of seven, is worried that Al-Shabaab recruiters in Isiolo town might take advantage of the holiday to brainwash children.

Earlier this year, the county security team raised concern that children were watching unrated videos in some video dens.

To keep his children in check, Mr Mamo, a civil servant, says he will task a close relative to look after them while he and his wife go to work.

In Nairobi, the fear of joining bad company makes Mr Peter Muia, a father of three, prefer to have his children stay with their mother at their rural home in Masii, Machakos County, than to stay with them in his rented house in Kayole.

“There is no big deal when they live in the countryside because there is much to do. They can feed animals, they can farm and do many other things for themselves. But in Nairobi, it will be disadvantageous because this child, for one, will be idle. Due to that, he will be easily convinced to join crime,” Mr Muia, 42, says.

The National Parents’ Association (NPA) chairman Nicholas Maiyo says one of the biggest causes for worry for parents is technology.

“The long holidays will be a challenge for us as parents. When it is short, it is a bit better for the management of the children. Now that they’re out, they will have access to mobile phones, and you know mobile phones have a lot of issues,” Mr Maiyo, who was recently elected to the new parents’ body, says.

Wary of the risk of having idle minds at the mercy of mass media, Ms Jacinta Wangeci, a hotel owner in Isiolo town, is looking for a female private tutor to ensure her two children are engaged during the holiday.

She has also employed a househelp to keep her children company while she goes to work.

“I cannot send my children to our rural home. They will be assigned to a lot of talks and won’t have time to study,” she says.

Ms Verah Ogolla, a 31-year-old mother in Kisumu, says children tend to spend long hours on television, computers and cell phones, which may lead to indiscipline and laziness.

The mother of three, is also concerned about the high prevalence of sexually transmitted infections among adolescents in her home county.

On the issue of undue influence on children during the holiday period, Mr Richard Oketch wrote to the Cutting Edge, a readers’ forum for the Daily Nation newspaper, saying the ever-rising political temperatures are a cause for alarm.

“I fear that many will lose focus, now that the election campaign gears are being engaged towards a politically charged nation,” wrote Mr Oketch, a concerned parent.

In light of that, Mr Ongwenyi, the Kisii-based pharmacist, says he will only allow this children to watch one hour of TV a day.

“I have two candidates in my home this year. My firstborn son will be doing his KCSE while my eldest daughter will be doing her KCPE. Too much television will distract them from their studies,” Mr Ongwenyi says.

EDIFYING ACTIVITIES
The fact that this holiday coincides with the Christmas festivities worries Mr John Maundu, a 51-year-old father of three in Mombasa, especially because of his son.

“Being in town and with a lot of festive activities and performances going on, my son may stray,” Mr Maundu says.

Mombasa has been in the news previously for harbouring drug dens and for providing a conducive environment for youth to be hooked to hard drugs.

Mr Maundu plans to constantly keep an eye on his son through regular phone calls.

Elsewhere in Bungoma County, the issue of teenage sex is keeping parents on the edge in the Mt Elgon area, especially because in March this year, 20 girls were found to be pregnant at Chelebei Secondary School.

Mr Ferdinand Juma and Mr Ndiwa Chemiat, parents in the Mt Elgon area, say they are counselling their children to make them aware of the dangers of illicit sex.

“We are talking with our children to ensure that we reduce the incidents of children getting pregnant and finally dropping out of school,” Mr Chemiat says.

Mr Juma said: “We know it’s not easy to follow their every move but we know we have to find activities like in farms or shops to keep them busy.”

Some parents are embracing the idea of taking their children for holiday programmes organised by various entities.

In Kisumu, for instance, Ms Purity Akoth has come up with a programme for children aged between six and 18.

Some of the scheduled events include football for both boys and girls, Bible study, peer talks, singing, acting, creative work, modelling, public speaking, photography, storytelling and general games.

“An idle mind is the devil’s workshop. They may be tempted to do bad things but when their minds are engaged, they have no time,” Ms Akoth, the director of Atlantis Fitness,says.

In Nairobi, Mr Martin Chege is organising the Wezesha Kids Club in Lavington starting from November 7.

A parent pays Sh800 a day to have their children take part in sports, ballet dance, tae-kwo-ndo, cookery, among other arts.

“We banish idleness and save the children from getting into bad groups. We also enhance their skills besides discovering talents,” he said.

Nairobi-based trainer Sheillah Wambu is also organising events for children in Nairobi and Mombasa through her Golden Start Initiative.

The Nairobi camp will run from November 6-18 while the Mombasa one will take place between November 27 and December 9.

They will offer lessons in disaster awareness, safety drills, sign language among others.

“During this time, we teach the students a different kind of way, a different kind of life, whereby we do life skills,” she says.

Due to holiday programmes available, a mother of three in Kisumu plans to enrol her teenage daughter for cooking classes.

Ms Lillian Okwirry, 43, knows the danger posed by the two-month break but wants her daughter to have fun as she learns new things.

“I am going to take her for cooking classes so that she learns valuable new skills and explore new ideas,” she says.

CHANGE DATES
But not everyone values holiday camps. In a past interview with the Sunday Nation, developmental psychologist Mbutu Kariuki dismissed the idea, saying parents are using them to avoid spending time with their children.

“Some parents are very uncomfortable about having to spend any real time with their children so they prefer to send them away as soon as they go home for the holidays,” Mr Kariuki says, adding that delegating parenting duties needs to be done carefully.

In Mt Elgon, the Chwele Friends Church is planning to hold a religious conference in December for youth.

The church’s secretary, Alex Waliaula, said the area needs a different approach in order to reduce the number of teenage pregnancies.

Josana Academy in Kisumu is organising holiday events for children that include chess, reading competitions, public speaking.

However, the Education ministry’s directive that learners should keep off school during examination periods may hamper the execution of some of the holiday programmes organised by the school.

The December holiday, according to the Education ministry, should start on October 28.

This will ensure that when Kenya Certificate of Primary Education tests begin on November 1, there will be no other learner but the candidates in school.

Teachers who spoke to the Sunday Nation said that by Friday, the ministry had not released opening dates for January.

Mr Peter Ndoro, the CEO of the Kenya Private Schools Association, is vouching for the January 3 date because 2017 being an election year, learning is likely to be affected.

“We would not like learners to waste any more time at home. We propose that schools be opened on the first Tuesday of 2017, which is on January 3,” he said. The Education ministry on Saturday said schools will reopen on January 4.

By Elvis Ondieki, Rebecca Okwany, Raphael Wanjala, Angela Oketch, Aggrey Omboki, Stanley Kimuge and Ouma Wanzala
SOURCE: NATION MEDIA