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Book clubs: Why reading circles matter, grow them

While serving as a Fulbright Scholar-in-Residence in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, USA, in 2009, I encountered one of those rare moments that expanded my imagination.

By Egara Kabaji 1 month ago

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Beware, some victories are actually defeats in disguise

To understand what is happening in our politics today, we need to look back at history and mythology and listen to their lessons.

By Egara Kabaji 1 month ago

State of our nation's creativity and the crisis of shrinking minds

In August this year, Daystar University magnanimously hosted one of the largest and most energetic gatherings of Kenyan writers in recent memory.

By Egara Kabaji 2 months ago

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Highs and lows of new Senior School Literature syllabus

The more things change, the more they remain the same. As I reflect on these designs, I cannot help but feel the weight of this paradox.

By Egara Kabaji 2 months ago

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Why modern medicine must relearn art of patient stories

Modern medicine has lost this art of listening. The hospital, with its machines, forms, and impatient queues, has replaced the listening ear with a checklist.

By Prof Egara Kabaji 2 months ago

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KCSE Literature questions no one dares to ask, but should

In last week's installment, I argued that our teaching of literature at all levels of education is wanting.

By Prof Egara Kabaji 3 months ago

Why our teaching of literature must go beyond criticism

Literature indeed loses its vitality when it is reduced to theory alone. When we confine it to critical analysis, we strip it of the very life it seeks to illuminate.

By Prof Egara Kabaji 3 months ago

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JSS teachers' story shows why it's a dog's life for many

Some days ago, social media was abuzz with the story of a divorced couple who decided to bare their hearts before the world.

By Egara Kabaji 3 months ago

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Letters of Betrayal: How TSC lost its narrative

A good story lifts and motivates, while a broken story diminishes, demoralises, and erodes trust. The way an institution tells its story shapes how society perceives it.

By Prof Egara Kabaji 4 months ago

Don't entertain reckless folly of selling Kenya Literature Bureau

There are moments when governments must be reminded that not everything is for sale.

By Egara Kabaji 4 months ago

Why David Maillu is a goldmine Machakos leaders just won't see

Not long ago, my friend David Maillu invited me to his Mathemboni residence. I was excited to visit what I can only describe as the shrine of this mysterious and enigmatic writer.

By Egara Kabaji 4 months ago

Don't just focus on STEM, content production is the real goldmine

For the past year, I have been deeply involved in the development of Competency-Based Education (CBE) materials for a new learning area: Theatre and Film Studies.

By Prof Egara Kabaji 5 months ago

For CBE to succeed, establish extensive reading in schools

A few months ago, I organised a series of workshops in Kakamega County to confront a crisis that has long gone unattended: the lack of a strong culture of reading in our schools.

By Egara Kabaji 5 months ago

Memoirs: You owe your story to those who come after you

My friend Lee Njiru's memoir, The Presidents' Pressman, is perhaps the best window through which you can understand the institution of the presidency in Kenya.

By Prof Egara Kabaji 5 months ago

Want students to learn language? Revive the lost art of letter writing

I was recently shocked to learn that a friend's daughter had been beaten black and blue by her teachers in a secondary school for being found in possession of a love letter to a boyfriend!

By Prof Egara Kabaji 5 months ago

Doing badly moneywise? Blame education and taxation systems

One of the wisest decisions I made in recent years was to go back to school and earn a Master's degree in Business Administration (Strategic Management option).

By Prof Egara Kabaji 6 months ago

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Sex, survival and our society's greatest lie about prostitutes

Prostitution is not just about sex. It is about power and greed. Our nation is violated by men who symbolize a nation auctioning its soul.

By Egara Kabaji 6 months ago

It's time big publishers woke up and embraced young writers

When I published my latest novel, Shadows of Love, I was reminded of something I had always suspected to be true.

By Egara Kabaji 6 months ago

Gen Z and millennial courage is the legacy of good education

The youth are shaking the foundations of the status quo and demanding to be heard.

By Egara Kabaji 6 months ago

Only a well thought out plan will bring out the best in our creatives

What is ailing the creative industry in Kenya? This is the question I had to confront last weekend while facilitating a writers' training.

By Prof Egara Kabaji 7 months ago

Why we must take the creative industry seriously

We need to stop treating artists as afterthoughts. We must invest in theatres, studios, performance spaces, and creative hubs in every sub-location and county.

By Prof Egara Kabaji 7 months ago

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Mukoma violated what's African and could have cursed himself

In life, there are matters that demand silence from us. This is not because they are not important, or that we do not care. It is just that they are sacred.

By Egara Kabaji 7 months ago

In this revolution don't experience Rip Van Winkle moment

One of the most enduring stories I read as a youngster, which has remained etched in my mind, is Rip Van Winkle by Washington Irving.

By Prof Egara Kabaji 7 months ago

Ngugi: The man who planted stories in our souls

Why is Kenya, a small country, so well known across the globe? Is it because of our world-class runners who dominate marathons and bring gold home?

By Prof Egara Kabaji 8 months ago

That was Chris for you...

Chris Wanjala legacy: Let us celebrate our heroes when they are still alive

By Prof Egara Kabaji 7 years ago