ABSTRACT
A commission to look into the status of education in the country was set up by the Kenya Government immediately after independence in December 1963. It was chaired by Professor S. Ominde, and it was to examine the whole educational system in Kenya. The first part of the report was published in 1964 and the second in 1965. The Ominde Commission (1964/5) stated nine objectives of education in Kenya. These objectives can be summarised as follows.
To foster a sense of nationhood and promote national unity.
To serve the people of Kenya and the needs of Kenya without discrimination.
To be an instrument of the secular state, in which no religion is privileged, and to respect the religious convictions of all people.
To respect the cultural traditions of the people of Kenya, both as expressed in social institutions and relationships.
To restrain an excessively competitive spirit in the schools which is incompatible without traditional beliefs. Every young person coming from our schools must be made to realise that he has a valuable part to play in the national life.
To ensure that education is regarded, and used, as an instrument for the conscious change of attitudes and relationships, preparing children for those changes of outlook required by modern methods of productive organisation. At the same time education must foster respect for human personality.
To serve the needs of national development.
To promote social equality and remove divisions of race and tribe and religion. To pay special attention to training in social obligations and responsibilities.
To ensure adaptability to change.
The commission also made several recommendations which have strongly influenced national policies since that time. The commission recommended a type of education that would promote a respect for the cultures of the people of Kenya, and social equality and national development.