Grade 10 Teachers: Closing the First SBA Year, Planning Grade 11

The first Grade 10 SBA cycle is done. Written tools opened on the KNEC Competency-Based Assessment (CBA) portal on 5 October 2026, schools had until 23 October to administer, score and upload them, and KNEC's schedule set 31 October 2026 as the last date for Grade 10 SBA scores. Every senior school in Kenya has now run, for the first time, an assessment that counts for 15 percent of a learner's final Kenya Certificate of Basic Education (KCBE) score.

The next ten weeks, while learners are on the December holiday, are the best time a department will get to file the evidence properly, write down what went wrong while it is still fresh, and set up Grade 11 so that the 2027 cycle runs more calmly than the 2026 one. This guide is a practical close-out and planning checklist for Grade 10 teachers, built only on what KNEC, KICD and the Ministry of Education have actually published.

Information current as of 27 October 2026. Always follow your school's instructions and the latest KNEC circular where they differ from this page.

Key takeaways

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• KNEC requires schools to keep records and supporting evidence from Grade 10 SBA: marked work, photos and videos, portfolios, journals and learner products. File them before the holiday ends.
• Grade 11 SBA in 2027 is worth another 15 percent of the KCBE. KNEC also plans to pilot the senior school summative assessment in 2027.
• KICD began distributing over 300 approved Grade 11 textbooks and literary texts on 6 October 2026. Distribution pauses for national exams and resumes on weekdays to 23 December 2026.
• From 2027 the Ministry plans three school terms of about 12 weeks each, replacing the 13, 14 and 9 week pattern of 2026.
• Write a one-page handover per class now. The Grade 11 teacher in January may not be you.

Closing the Grade 10 SBA year: the evidence file

KNEC's Grade 10 guidance, as reported, requires schools to keep the records and evidence generated during assessment. That is not paperwork for its own sake. If KNEC ever queries a score, or a parent asks how a project was marked, the evidence file is the school's only answer. It is also your best defence against the malpractice warning KNEC issued: deviation in scoring that leads to over-awarding, or uploading scores not based on a learner's own work, will be treated as malpractice.

One rule saves a lot of pain: nothing that was used to score a learner leaves the school until KNEC or the Ministry says it can. Learners often ask for their projects back. Photograph and file first.

Five lessons from the first Grade 10 SBA cycle

Every school will have its own list. These five come straight from the requirements KNEC set, and they are the ones most likely to matter again in Grade 11.

1. The written window was short. Nineteen days, 5 to 23 October, to print, sit, mark, moderate and upload 17 subjects' tests. Schools that had already agreed marking teams and an upload rota before 5 October finished calmly. Write your 2027 rota now.
2. Colour mattered. KNEC asked schools to reproduce materials in full colour where tools contained colour diagrams, photographs or charts, or to use digital devices. Check printer capacity and toner budgets for 2027 before Term 1 begins.
3. The OTP phone number is a single point of failure. Principals log in with school credentials and a one-time password sent to the school's registered phone. Confirm the number is current and that more than one senior person knows the procedure.
4. Task-level entry exposes sloppy marking. Entering scores per task or question, rather than one total, means a mismatch between script and portal is easy to spot. Moderate before entry, not after.
5. Community Service Learning is a whole-school job. CSL is one of the four core subjects every learner takes, alongside English, Kiswahili or Kenyan Sign Language, and Mathematics. Its project evidence came from outside the classroom, and gaps in group logbooks were the hardest thing to fix late.

For a step-by-step on the portal itself, keep our KNEC CBA portal guide for teachers bookmarked on the staffroom computer. For CSL rubrics and evidence, the Grade 10 CSL project guide sets out the levels.

Planning Grade 11 for January 2027

The Ministry of Education's 2026 calendar ends the December holiday on 1 January 2027, and Education News Hub reported the Ministry's circular as giving Monday 4 January 2027 as the first day of Term 1. Confirm the exact date with your county office. Three facts shape Grade 11 planning.

1. The term pattern is changing

In June 2026, Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba announced that from 2027 all three terms will be rationalised to about 12 weeks, replacing the uneven pattern. The 2026 calendar ran Term 1 for 13 weeks, Term 2 for 14 and Term 3 for 9. A 12-week Term 3 in 2027 would give Grade 11 three more weeks at the end of the year than Grade 10 had, but the Ministry has not yet published the full 2027 dates.

2. Grade 11 textbooks are already moving

KICD began distributing approved Grade 11 textbooks and literary texts on 6 October 2026, covering learning areas such as Mathematics, English, Kiswahili, French, Agriculture, Physics, Home Science, ICT, Electricity, Metal Work, Biology and Chemistry. Distribution was set to run to 23 October, pause during the national examinations and resume on weekdays until 23 December 2026. KICD asked principals to make sure staff are available to receive deliveries, and schools that have not received books, or received too few, by mid-January 2027 were told to contact KICD. KICD also warned that using unapproved textbooks contravenes Section 27 of the KICD Act, 2013, and that teachers should only advise parents to buy approved books. The approved list is in the Orange Book on the KICD website.

3. Grade 11 assessment is the second 15 percent

KNEC has stated that Grade 11 SBA will contribute 15 percent of the final KCBE score, the same as Grade 10, and that it plans to pilot the senior school summative assessment in 2027 when this cohort is in Grade 11. A September 2026 press report quoting a KNEC official described Grade 11 projects and practicals in Term 2 and written tests in Term 3, mirroring 2026. Treat that as likely but wait for the KNEC circular before fixing dates.

The one-page class handover

Many Grade 10 teachers will not teach the same class in Grade 11. Before you leave for the holiday, write one page per class per subject. It takes twenty minutes and saves the January teacher three weeks.

1. Coverage: which sub-strands of the Grade 10 curriculum design were fully taught, which were rushed, and which were not reached. The KICD design for each subject lists the sub-strands and suggested lessons.
2. Assessment: where the scripts, scores and evidence for this class are filed.
3. Learners needing support: names, the subject strand, and what has already been tried. Include learners with special needs and any agreed accommodations.
4. CSL groups: group membership, community partners and the state of each group's evidence.
5. Resources: which textbooks the class used, and whether every learner has the approved Grade 11 book in hand.

The KICD Grade 10 curriculum designs guide lists each subject's design so you can tick off sub-strands quickly, and our free KICD curriculum designs page is the place to look for the Grade 11 designs as they are added.

A department that closed well

Take Mr Otieno, head of Mathematics at a county school in Siaya (a made-up example). On Tuesday 27 October his department meets for ninety minutes. They agree that scripts for Core Mathematics and Essential Mathematics go into separate box files by stream, and the deputy principal keeps the key. They compare portal entries against three randomly chosen scripts per stream and find one transposed score, which is reported to the principal so it can be handled through whatever KNEC process exists. They write down two lessons: start marking the day after each paper, and print the 2027 tools in colour the week they open. Each teacher writes a one-page handover. In the last week of December the department checks the Grade 11 textbook delivery against the school's allocation. On the first day of Term 1, nobody is searching for anything.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Sending projects home. They are assessment evidence. Photograph, file and keep them in school.
• Quietly "fixing" an uploaded score. Report any error to the principal. Changes outside KNEC's process can look like malpractice.
• Recommending unapproved Grade 11 books. KICD has warned against it under the KICD Act, 2013. Check the Orange Book.
• Telling parents Mathematics is optional. It is one of the four core subjects for every learner: Core Mathematics in STEM, Essential Mathematics in the other pathways.
• Planning Grade 11 around a nine-week Term 3. The 2027 pattern is expected to be about 12 weeks per term. Wait for the calendar, but plan for longer.
• Leaving CSL to one teacher. It is a core subject with off-site evidence. Share the supervision.

Resources for the Grade 11 start

The Grade 11 hub and the Grade 10 hub hold notes, schemes and assessment materials for the cohort, and our report on Grade 11 textbooks reaching schools covers the delivery news so far. When you share the year's results with parents, our Grade 10 SBA parent guide explains the 15 percent in language families understand.

Frequently asked questions

How long should schools keep Grade 10 SBA evidence?

KNEC's guidance requires schools to keep records and supporting evidence, but we have not seen a published retention period. Keep everything until KNEC or the Ministry tells you otherwise.

When does Grade 11 start?

The 2026 Ministry calendar ends the holiday on 1 January 2027, and the Ministry circular as reported by Education News Hub gives Monday 4 January 2027 for the start of Term 1. Confirm with your county office.

What if our Grade 11 textbooks have not arrived?

KICD said distribution continues on weekdays until 23 December 2026. Schools without books, or with too few, by mid-January 2027 should contact KICD as directed in its notice.

Will the Grade 11 SBA follow the same pattern as Grade 10?

A press report quoting a KNEC official said projects and practicals in Term 2 and written tests in Term 3. KNEC has not yet issued the 2027 circular, so treat this as provisional.

What is the 2027 senior school pilot?

KNEC has said it plans to pilot the senior school summative assessment in 2027 while this cohort is in Grade 11. Schools taking part will be told by KNEC.

Can we use our own Grade 10 end-of-year exam as SBA?

No. KNEC SBA uses KNEC's tools and scoring guides. Your own exams are for internal feedback.

Conclusion

The first Grade 10 SBA cycle ends with the 31 October 2026 upload date, and the work of closing it belongs to the holiday: file the evidence KNEC requires, write down the five lessons while they are fresh, and leave a one-page handover for every class. Then plan Grade 11 around what is confirmed: another 15 percent of the KCBE, approved textbooks arriving by 23 December, and terms of about 12 weeks from 2027. Departments that do this in November start January calm. The Grade 11 hub is the place to begin.

Sources: KNEC Grade 10 SBA guidelines, as reported by Kenyans.co.ke; KNEC weighting and 2027 pilot, The Star, 25 June 2026; KICD Grade 11 textbook distribution, The Star, 6 October 2026; 2027 term lengths, Kenyans.co.ke, 10 June 2026.