Nakuru County is home to one of Kenya's unique primary schools dubbed Children in Freedom School where pupils wear African attire that includes Ankara and dashiki as opposed to the usual, sweater, shirt, tie, and trouser that is associated with most schools.
Children in Freedom School aims to empower students to embrace and appreciate the African culture while at the same time understanding challenges that have engulfed the continent and come up with solutions on how to address them.
How and When Was Children in Freedom School founded?
The school was founded in 2018 by Oku Kanayo and Utheri in 2018. According to information on its website, the two established the institution after they were "fed up with the international rhetoric that paints the African continent as hopeless, backward and in need of saving."
This school is anchored on key pillars that include ubunifu (creativity), utambuzi (awareness), udadisi (curiosity), bidii (hard work) and ubuntu (collective effort).
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Unique Features About the School
To start with, pupils do not wear the regular uniform, instead, they dress in African-themed attire that acts as the school's official uniform. According to photos on its website, students can be seen dressed in dashiki, Ankara and even tying pesos.
File image of students at Children in Freedom School. [Photo: Courtesy]
Moreover, pupils introduce themselves using their African names and are taught a variety of subjects that includes local languages such as Luhya, Luo, Kalenjin, Kikuyu, and Kisii among others.
Another unique feature is the fact that children are exposed to technological studies at an early age and as such, every pupil has an official school email address.
The school utilizes the CBC and 844 curriculum but has additional subjects that are meant to provide life skills to the students.
Cost
The school fee ranges from Sh 40,000 to 90,000 per term depending on whether one picks the day or boarding option.
File image of students at Children in Freedom School. [Photo: Courtesy]
Achievements
In 2022, the school had its first lot of KCPE candidates who attained a mean grade of 355 with the first student scoring 406.
The school's unique has seen it receive accolades and recognition, with the most recent being in June 2023 where the institution was shortlisted for the T4 Education initiative’s World’s Best School Prizes Award for preserving African culture.
