Primary School Where Parents Pay 2.7 Million Per Year For Nursery Students
In Kenya, a new trend is starting to emerge among the upper class of parents who are prepared to spend anything to give their young children the best education possible.
Early childhood education, which lasts from one and a half years to six years, has emerged as a new luxury for individuals hoping to advance socially and make significant financial investments in the future of their offspring.
Some Kenyan parents are prepared to spend up to Sh2.7 million for children under the age of seven to receive a customised education.
They participate in a variety of extracurricular activities, such as playing musical instruments or learning how to ride a horse, in addition to paying exorbitant tuition costs.
Children’s learning is enriched by these activities, which also pique their curiosity.
One of the parents that enrolled their daughter in an international kindergarten is Carol Ondembo, a mother of two. Her four-year-old daughter attends the exclusive Braeburn Imani International School, where she pays a tuition of Sh111,800 per term.
Mrs. Ondembo thinks the expense is an investment in much more than just education, despite the cost appearing to be prohibitive.
“A parent has expenses besides their child’s education. We pay for a child to learn in a pleasant atmosphere, develop good manners, and receive exposure that she would not have received in a regular school, the woman says. With a class size of 10 to 12 students and three teachers, the school clearly places a high priority on individualised attention, which encourages active learning.
Nairobi is now the most expensive city in Africa for foreign schools, with tuition costs reaching Sh2.9 million year due to the increasing demand for international education.
These institutions provide competence- and skill-based curriculum, such as the International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) or International Baccalaureate (IB), that are tailored to each student’s development rather than taking a blanket approach.
The Kenya Association of International Schools’ Head of Secretariat, Jane Mwangi, highlights the advantages of such education by saying that “despite the high fees, the pupils can read, write, express themselves, understand their bodies, go to the toilet unaccompanied, and function independently than they could without this foundation.”
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The international kindergartens serve both local Kenyan children and visitors to Kenya. These institutions engage competent graduate teachers and make significant investments in first-rate facilities to fulfil the demands of such a picky clientele, placing them on level with universities in the US or UK.
The emphasis on extracurricular activities at these prestigious kindergartens is one of their greatest advantages. The extensive curriculum includes swimming, riding horses, practising football and even learning French from local speakers. These activities are seen as crucial for fostering early skill development and preparing kids for the future.
“In KG2, they learn how to blend to get ready for intense reading,” says Kate Jackson, Senior Admissions and Communications Officer at Sabis International School in Nairobi’s Runda neighbourhood. They need to play constantly because they are young. We have a racetrack and a 13-meter heated pool for kids to learn to swim.
Primary School Where Parents Pay 2.7 Million Per Year For Nursery Students
The dedication to comprehensive development has a price. Sabis charges about Sh670,000 for kindergarten tuition annually. Parents must additionally pay for books, snacks, lunch, and transportation in addition to these expenses. The expensive tuition is necessary to keep up the quality of the teaching and facilities needed to provide a world-class education.
Jane Mwangi, however, advises against presuming that such pricing generates large profits for school owners. “Running a kindergarten is not a cheap affair,” she explains. When you calculate it, you discover that the kindergartens barely bring in any money for the schools. The business of education is a labour of love. Since it may take up to 11 years to break even, it must be a long-term investment.
Families from all backgrounds may not be able to afford such a deluxe education. Early childhood education options in Kenya range from state schools, which are more economical or even free, to private schools, which have varying cost schedules based on their standing and amenities.
In the end, it’s important to strike a balance between early childhood education costs, educational quality, and family finances. Elite international kindergartens provide a remarkable learning environment, but parents should also take into account the total advantages their kids will encounter and the long-term effects on their future performance.
