Grade 10 SBA: The 31 October Portal Deadline and the 15 Per Cent, a Final Checklist for Parents

Grade 10 School Based Assessment scores are due on the KNEC CBA portal by 31 October 2026. Schools upload them, not parents and not learners. But a parent who asks the right questions in the next two weeks can make sure nothing is quietly missing when the portal closes.

This matters more than it looks. Under the KCBE weighting, Grade 10 SBA counts for 15 per cent of the final senior school result, Grade 11 SBA another 15 per cent, and the Grade 12 summative assessment the remaining 70 per cent. That 15 per cent is being banked now, in a year when most families are thinking about end of term exams instead.

Why this year is different

Grade 10 in 2026 is the first CBC senior school cohort. No older brother or sister has been through this portal deadline, no teacher has done it with a senior school class before, and there is no settled routine at most schools yet. That is not a criticism of anyone. It simply means that mistakes are more likely in the first year, and a polite question from a parent is a reasonable safeguard.

Term 3 closes on Friday 23 October. After that, teachers are harder to reach, so the useful window for questions is the school days between now and then.

The 15 per cent in context

Fifteen per cent will not decide a result on its own. But it is the only part of the final grade that is fixed this early, and it cannot be improved later by revising harder in Grade 12. For the full schedule KNEC set out for this term, see our Grade 10 SBA schedule and October deadline.

The checklist: what to ask the school

Keep it short and friendly. A class teacher with forty learners and a deadline does not need a long letter. These five questions cover almost everything.

• "Has every one of my child's SBA tasks been marked and recorded?" Ask for the list of tasks by subject if the school can share it.
• "Are any tasks still outstanding for my child?" A learner who was absent or unwell on the day of a task is the most common reason for a gap.
• "Is the CSL project assessed and recorded?" Community Service Learning is compulsory and it is assessed, so it should appear in the record.
• "When does the school plan to upload, and who is doing it?" You do not need the answer to be a precise date. You want to hear that someone owns the job.
• "If something is missing, what should we do and by when?" This gets the school to tell you its own process, which is the one that actually applies.

If your school holds a parents evening or open day before closing, that is the natural moment. Our list of questions to ask teachers at a Term 3 parents evening fits well alongside this one.

CSL evidence: what to check at home

Community Service Learning is the part of SBA most likely to have loose ends, because it happens partly outside the classroom and depends on records the learner keeps. Before the school uploads, sit with your child for twenty minutes and look at what they actually have.

• The project write-up or log, in whatever format the teacher asked for.
• Evidence of the activity itself: photos, a signed note from a community contact, attendance records, or whatever the school specified.
• A reflection, if the teacher required one. Many CSL tasks ask the learner to explain what they learned, not only what they did.
• Confirmation it was handed in. "I finished it" and "the teacher has it" are not the same thing.

If anything here is unclear, our Grade 10 CSL project guide walks through what a complete project usually includes. Do not have your child redo work that has already been assessed. The aim is to confirm, not to start again.

What happens if a score is missing

Parents often ask what KNEC does about a missing SBA score. The honest answer is that the detail of how a gap is handled is between the school and KNEC, and we will not guess at penalties that have not been published. What we can say with confidence is this:

• The school is the only route to fix it. Parents and learners do not upload to the portal.
• Before 31 October is far easier than after. A gap raised now can usually be dealt with through the school's normal process.
• Ask, do not assume. If your child says a task "does not count", check that with the teacher directly.

If the school tells you a task can still be completed, help your child do it promptly and hand it in with a note of the date. If the school says it cannot, ask them to note the reason in the record, for example an absence on medical grounds, so there is a clear explanation on file.

A simple timeline for the next three weeks

Keep a copy of your own

Because this cohort is the first, it is worth keeping your own simple record: the list of SBA tasks, any marks your child was told, and photos of the CSL evidence. It costs nothing, and if a question ever comes up in Grade 11 or Grade 12, you will have something to point to rather than a memory.

Meanwhile, do not let the SBA conversation crowd out end of term revision. The end of Term 3 exams still matter for your child's confidence going into Grade 11. Our guide to what to revise by subject for Grade 10 end of term exams covers that side.

Frequently asked questions

Can I check my child's SBA scores on the KNEC portal myself?

The portal is used by schools to upload scores. Ask the school what they can show you of your child's record before the upload.

Is CSL really part of the assessed score?

Community Service Learning is a compulsory, assessed part of senior school. Confirm with the school how your child's CSL project has been recorded for this term.

My child missed an SBA task while sick. What should we do?

Tell the class teacher now, before 23 October, and ask what the school's process is. Keep any medical note handy in case the school asks for it.

Does 15 per cent really make a difference?

On its own it will not decide a result, but it is locked in early and cannot be improved later. Making sure it is complete is the cheapest marks a family will ever protect.

With the SBA checked, the remaining weeks are best spent on steady practice. The Grade 10 Complete Revision and Exam Kit gives format-accurate papers across subjects for a cohort that has almost no past papers to use.