Tomorrow, Thursday the 3^rd November, I am heading down to Nairobi in order to pick up my daughter from her Secondary School which closes on Friday the 4^th November for the students in Form 1 through Form 3.  Form 4 students will remain behind to start their all important KCSE (Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education) exams on November 7th.  This one exam that makes or breaks their future after high school.  The KCPE (Kenya Certificate of Primary Education) exams are finishing tomorrow.  This is the exam that determines if and where students can continue on to secondary school.  I had lunch with a friend today whose daughter is taking these exams.  She was very nervous, though also excited, to know how her daughter has done.  The whole of primary school is geared towards getting a good score on the KCPE and the whole of secondary school is geared towards getting a good score on the KCSE.  To the detriment of a wider experience of life while in school, I feel.  It also leads to an extremely controlled curriculum in the Kenya school systems that doesn’t take into consideration the diversity of cultures and life experiences in this county.  Or the diversity of individual students and their needs.  This has bothered me for years.  I have looked at ways a number of times on how to improve the system.  Here in Samburu, how we could promote the students the best pastoralists ever.  Make education real life learning, not just pounding everyone into the same mold and hope for the best.  The frustration is that I haven’t been able to get people away from the rout learning everyone is convinced is required to simply do well on the exams.  Lots of ideas, little practical application as yet.  Still trying.  Never give up.  That is my mode of operation!