Second Phase Of Lecturers Strike Enter Second Week And Students Are Greatly Affected

By: Per­pet­u­al John And Sharon Nasiche

As the lec­tur­ers’ strike in Kenya enters its sec­ond week, par­ents are under­stand­ably con­cerned about its impact on their chil­dren. Uni­ver­si­ty lec­tur­ers across the coun­try have paused teach­ing, demand­ing bet­ter pay and work­ing con­di­tions, which has left thou­sands of stu­dents with emp­ty class­rooms and stalled progress. This strike is not just a tem­po­rary disruption—it’s a com­plex issue affect­ing stu­dents’ learn­ing, their men­tal well-being, and their future.

The most imme­di­ate effect of the strike is on stu­dents’ edu­ca­tion. With lec­tur­ers refus­ing to teach, stu­dents are miss­ing out on valu­able learn­ing time, lec­tures, and exams. In uni­ver­si­ties, where each semes­ter is care­ful­ly sched­uled to cov­er spe­cif­ic top­ics, even a week’s delay can lead to over­crowd­ed ses­sions lat­er or the need to extend the semes­ter. For final-year stu­dents, this is espe­cial­ly trou­bling, as any delay might push back grad­u­a­tion dates, poten­tial­ly affect­ing their job prospects or fur­ther stud­ies. This dis­rup­tion cre­ates uncer­tain­ty about when class­es will resume, and the con­stant wait­ing takes a toll on stu­dents’ moti­va­tion and enthu­si­asm.

Beyond aca­d­e­mics, the strike is also affect­ing stu­dents’ finances and those of their fam­i­lies. Many stu­dents live on cam­pus or in near­by rent­ed accom­mo­da­tions, with fam­i­lies pay­ing rent, trans­porta­tion, and oth­er liv­ing expens­es for the semes­ter. How­ev­er, with­out class­es, these costs feel like wast­ed mon­ey. Some par­ents may have saved for their child’s edu­ca­tion, while oth­ers might be tak­ing on loans. When strikes extend semes­ter dates, fam­i­lies often end up pay­ing extra in fees for months that were not orig­i­nal­ly planned. This finan­cial strain is espe­cial­ly hard for fam­i­lies who have made sac­ri­fices to send their chil­dren to uni­ver­si­ty.

Anoth­er con­cern is the effect on stu­dents’ men­tal well-being. Young peo­ple often feel anx­ious about their stud­ies, their future, and the expec­ta­tions placed upon them. Strikes make this even hard­er, as stu­dents now face increased uncer­tain­ty about their edu­ca­tion and future plans. Many stu­dents rely on struc­ture and a clear time­line to stay focused, but the strike dis­rupts this rou­tine, leav­ing them stressed and even frus­trat­ed. Over time, this stress can turn into feel­ings of help­less­ness, which can impact a stu­den­t’s abil­i­ty to con­cen­trate and learn even when class­es resume.

Social­ly, strikes iso­late stu­dents, as the uni­ver­si­ty com­mu­ni­ty is an impor­tant part of stu­dents’ lives. Dur­ing strikes, many stu­dents go back home, while oth­ers stay near the cam­pus, often uncer­tain about when they’ll return to class. This back-and-forth can cre­ate a sense of dis­con­nec­tion from friends, teach­ers, and class­mates. Some stu­dents use this time to catch up on stud­ies or per­son­al projects, but the lack of for­mal learn­ing leaves them with­out guid­ance and sup­port from their lec­tur­ers.

For par­ents, this is a dif­fi­cult time as well. Many feel frus­trat­ed see­ing their chil­dren unable to study while hav­ing to pay for costs that do not feel jus­ti­fied. Par­ents want the best for their chil­dren, and they wor­ry about the pos­si­ble long-term effects that this strike may have on their child’s edu­ca­tion and future prospects.

In the long term, this strike high­lights the need for mean­ing­ful reforms in Kenya’s high­er edu­ca­tion sec­tor. Strikes have become a recur­ring issue due to ongo­ing dis­putes over salaries, fund­ing, and work­ing con­di­tions. For a solu­tion, both the gov­ern­ment and lec­tur­ers need to find a sus­tain­able agree­ment that ensures stu­dents can con­tin­ue their edu­ca­tion with­out these inter­rup­tions. Par­ents and stu­dents deserve to see an edu­ca­tion sys­tem that runs smooth­ly and meets every­one’s needs.

Until the strike is resolved, stu­dents and fam­i­lies are left wait­ing and hop­ing that a com­pro­mise will soon be reached. For now, par­ents and stu­dents are encour­aged to stay informed, plan for pos­si­ble delays, and find ways to remain pro­duc­tive dur­ing this uncer­tain time.

By Per­pet­u­al John And Sharon Nasiche Ron­go Uni­ver­si­ty Media Stu­dents.