by Joseph Ogungo on Monday, 8 June 2026 – 8:53 am KNUT Secretary General Collins Oyuu with other KNUT Officials Daily Nation The Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) has dismissed calls to change the second-term school calendar amid recent unrest at several schools. Speaking after attending a church service at Nyakach Girls’ National School in Kisumu County on Sunday, June 7, KNUT Deputy Secretary-General Hesbon Otieno rejected calls to review the school calendar. According to Otieno, the process of changing the school calendar is very expensive and hence cannot be sustained for now. “The school calender must proceed and go on uninterrupted so that we can have the calendar completed at the end of the year. It is very expensive to disrupt the calenders,” Otieno stated. President William Ruto alongside high school students PCS He emphasised that the school calendar needed to be proceeded with as it is today to ensure that it is completed at the end of the year as it was projected. His comments come amid calls from lawmakers and other stakeholders for the Ministry of Education to revise the second-term calendar following waves of unrest in secondary schools across the country. Several leaders have called on the ministry to particularly restructure the second term, which is overly long and academically demanding for learners, hence the unrest. The proposals include redesignation of the second term to reduce pressure on students and improve overall learning conditions. Among the proposals is breaking the term into shorter timelines, including an additional mid-term break to allow students to rest and recover. However, the teachers’ union has dismissed all these and instead called on students to maintain discipline in schools. According to Otieno, the unrest stems from a lack of discipline and dialogue, calling on the students to address their grievances through their leaders and to stop destroying property. “Students, we are calling you up to style up to be the students you are supposed to be, if you have anything you have to address, you have the student body you have elected so that you can have a dialogue with the leadership of the school,” he added. KNUT’s stand is the same as the ministry’s, with Basic Education Principal Secretary Julius Bitok urging teachers to sit down with students and agree on several terms, including exam dates, among other things, that he said agitate students. Bitok even proposed that teachers consider postponing the exams , but ruled out changing the calendar or sending students home for an early half-term break. As of Monday, June 8, over 50 schools have been closed down after students either burned dormitories, destroyed properties, attacked teachers or even threatened to strike. Students at Agoro Sare School try to save their belongings as a fire engulfs a dormitory on June 6, 2026 Photo @BabaHafusa_ . Latest News Duale, Ogamba, Joho Announce Key State Board Appointments Mon, 8 Jun 2026 – 9:47 am KNUT Addresses Calls to Review Second Term Calendar Amid Unrest Mon, 8 Jun 2026 – 8:53 am UDA MP Sends Demand to DCI After Machakos Mob Justice Incident Mon, 8 Jun 2026 – 8:44 am Kenyans in South Africa on Alert as Govt Launches Fresh Immigration Crackdown Mon, 8 Jun 2026 – 8:14 am Chaos as KDF Impostor is Arrested with Gun at Football Game Mon, 8 Jun 2026 – 7:47 am Deaths Reported After Bus Full of Passengers Crashes Into Three Vehicles Mon, 8 Jun 2026 – 7:12 am The Little-Known Meaning Behind the ‘Z’ on Trailer Registration Plates Sun, 7 Jun 2026 – 7:54 pm Explained: Why Some Petrol Stations in Nairobi Sell Fuel Below EPRA-Set Prices Sun, 7 Jun 2026 – 7:07 pm Ruto Appoints Former MP to Prestigious Govt Role Sun, 7 Jun 2026 – 6:57 pm How You Could Be Increasing Your Power by Up to 10% Without Knowing Sun, 7 Jun 2026 – 6:04 pm Ruto Flies Out Again as Details of European Tour Emerge Sun, 7 Jun 2026 – 4:38 pm Details of Ruto’s Perks for Gor Mahia After 22nd FKF Premier League Title Sun, 7 Jun 2026 – 2:43