Your child's report card arrived and instead of marks out of 100, you are looking at two letters: EE, ME, AE or BE. You are not alone. When Kenya released the first KJSEA results in December 2025, parents across the country drove to schools on a public holiday just to ask teachers what the grades meant. This guide explains every level clearly, shows you exactly how the points work, and tells you what to do next.
Why Letters Instead of Marks
Kenya's Competency Based Education system measures whether a learner can apply knowledge and skills, not just recall them for one exam. A single percentage mark cannot capture that. So CBE uses four performance levels that describe where a learner is on a learning journey. Each level tells you something specific and actionable, not just a position in a class ranking.
This is the single biggest shift from the old 8-4-4 system. Under 8-4-4, a mark of 62% told you your child was above average but said nothing about what they could or could not do. Under CBE, a level tells you exactly where the gap is and what the next step looks like.
The Four Performance Levels
Every subject in every CBE grade uses the same four levels. Here is what each one means in plain language.
How the KJSEA Points System Works
For Grade 9 learners sitting the Kenya Junior School Education Assessment, each of the four levels is split into two sub-levels, giving eight points in total per subject. With nine learning areas assessed, the maximum total score is 72 points.
| Level | Sub-level | Points | Score Range |
|---|---|---|---|
| Exceeding Expectation | EE1 | 8 | 90% to 100% |
| Exceeding Expectation | EE2 | 7 | 75% to 89% |
| Meeting Expectation | ME1 | 6 | 58% to 74% |
| Meeting Expectation | ME2 | 5 | 41% to 57% |
| Approaching Expectation | AE1 | 4 | 31% to 40% |
| Approaching Expectation | AE2 | 3 | 21% to 30% |
| Below Expectation | BE1 | 2 | 11% to 20% |
| Below Expectation | BE2 | 1 | 1% to 10% |
A learner who scores ME1 in all nine learning areas earns 54 out of 72 points. A learner who scores EE1 in all nine earns the maximum 72 points. Most learners will have a mix of levels across different subjects, which is entirely normal and expected.
How These Grades Affect Senior School Placement
The KJSEA result is not the only thing that determines where your child goes for senior school. The placement formula uses three components combined into a single weighted score.
| Component | Weight | When It Happens |
|---|---|---|
| KJSEA (Grade 9 national assessment) | 60% | End of Grade 9 |
| KPSEA (Grade 6 national assessment) | 20% | End of Grade 6 |
| School Based Assessment (SBA) | 20% | Grades 7, 8 and 9 combined |
This means the work your child does every term across three years of junior school counts toward their final placement. A strong KJSEA result can lift a learner, but consistent SBA performance across Grades 7 to 9 also carries real weight.
Approaching Expectation Is Not a Failure
This is the most important thing to understand. AE does not mean your child is failing. It means they are on the learning journey and have not yet fully demonstrated a specific competency. The level is designed to be a diagnostic signal, not a verdict.
When you see AE on a report card, the right question to ask the teacher is: what specific skill is my child still developing, and what can we do at home to support it? That conversation is exactly what the CBE system is designed to enable.
BE requires more urgent attention. If your child receives BE in a core learning area, speak to the class teacher promptly. Schools are required to provide learner support for students performing below expectation.
Grading for Grades 1 to 8
The four-level system applies across all CBE grades, but the percentage ranges differ slightly at lower levels. For Grades 1 to 6, schools use a simplified version of the same four levels without the sub-level split. The report card will show one of the four letters for each learning area, along with a teacher comment describing what the learner can do and what they need to work on next.
For Grade 7 and Grade 8 learners, the same eight-point sub-level system used in KJSEA applies to end-of-term assessments, so learners and parents can track progress toward the Grade 9 national assessment.
What to Do When You Get the Report Card
Here is a practical checklist for parents receiving a CBE report card at any level.
Related Guides
- All Parent Guides -- plain-language explanations of every part of CBE
- CBE Pathway Guides -- understanding STEM, Social Sciences and Arts options for Grade 10
- Schools Guide -- finding the right senior school for your child
The Bottom Line
CBE grading is not a mystery once you know the key. Four levels, eight points per subject, 72 points maximum at Grade 9. AE means keep going. BE means act now. The report card is a map, not a verdict. Use it to have a better conversation with your child's teacher this term.