About KIE

about us

KIE was established in 1968 by Education Act, Cap 211, of the laws of Kenya, and its legal status defined in the 1976 KIE Order, issued through Legal Notice No. 105 of 1976, as provided for by the Act. Amendments to this Order are made by Legal Notice No. 144 of 1980, and Legal Notice No. 126 of 1984.

But the origin of the KIE dates as far back as 1957 when an English Special Centre (ESC) was set up in Nairobi for the purpose of coordinating and advising the Ministry of Education on the teaching of English. This was followed in, 1961, by a Science Center with an aim of promoting the standards of science teaching in the country. In 1965, a Mathematics Center was also set up to develop and implement the then new mathematics curriculum for schools. These three centers were amalgamated in January 1966 to form a Curriculum Development and Research Centre (CDRC). CDRC was also to incorporate all the other subjects.

Also evolving at that period was a center for teacher education programmes, known as the Kenya Institute of Education (KIE). KIE was established in April 1964 as a direct result of the Conference of Institutes of Education, which was held in Mombasa, Kenya, in January 1964. The then University of East Africa, in conjunction with the ministries of education of Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania, and other interested bodies, sponsored the conference. The then KIE was based at Kenyatta College (now university), and had the following functions:

Administer scheme of college examinations;
Recommend to the Ministry of Education on the award of certificates;
Serve as a center for professional activity for teachers, officers of the government and others involved in educational work;
Promote and cooperate in the provision of conference and in-service courses for teachers and others engaged in, or intending to engage in educational work.
Arrange for lectures and overseas courses of lecturers;
Promote educational research and secure due publication of the results;
Foster improvements in educational practice;
Provide advisory services to the Government and other organizations.

CDRC served in the membership of KIE panels. In 1966 the CDRC and the Kenya Institute of Education were merged to form the current Kenya Institute of Education with its location at the then Central Teachers College, Nairobi. The Central Teachers College was relocated to the Kenya Science Teachers College, Nairobi.

Another addition KIE was the education media service, which had started in 1963 as a School Broadcasting unit of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, and based at Mombasa House, Nairobi. In 1965, the unit was taken over by the Ministry of Education, and in July 1976 it was moved to KIE, and became the Educational Media Service (EMS) with expanded responsibilities of the production of multimedia learning resources.
Further Developments

Over the years, the role of the Institute has expanded to respond to emerging needs including:

* Development and strengthening District Centers for Early Childhood (DICECEs).
* Development (DICECES) through NACECE.
* Projections to develop and establish a modern NACECE Resource Centre to respond to the increasing National and International training needs.
* Development and implementation of Non formal Education curriculum.
* Dissemination of Education Programmes through a third channel.
* Upgrading of skills for personnel in the education and other sectors of our economy.
* Printing and publishing of educational and other materials.
* Offering consultancy services in Education and Training.
* Development and implementation of specialized professional training programmes.
* Networking of Information Systems.

Last Updated on Wednesday, 20 May 2009 20:42