Digital Essay Competition (DEC) encourages teachers and learners to use ICT in teaching and learning in the classroom. It recognizes and rewards students—and the teachers, parents, and caregivers who support learners to participate in DEC and submit their essays online. DEC prizes include scholarship money, computing devices, gift hampers, and national recognition with the Kenya Ministry of Education for the achievements of learners, teachers, and schools.

Official Contest Rules

By participating in the eKitabu Digital Essay Competition, participants agree that they meet and will follow all of the rules and guidelines as set out below.
The Official Competition Rules may be updated from time to time at the discretion of the contest organizers.
Participants found by the judges and organizers not to meet any of the requirements or guidelines will be disqualified and will not be eligible for a prize.

Participation Requirements

• Students enrolled in Upper Primary (Grades 5 – 8) and Secondary schools in Kenya are eligible to participate.
• Participants uploading an essay should ensure that it is in MS Word or PDF format.
• The essay word count should be between 500-800 words for primary and between 500-1500 words for secondary
• The organizers and/or judges will contact the finalists’ school Headmaster or Head Teacher to confirm that they meet all participation requirements and that their registration details (including age) are accurate.

Verification of Essays – Original Student Work

• Participants submitting an essay affirm that they are the sole creators of the essay submitted.
• Participants are encouraged to receive feedback on their essays from teachers, parents and their fellow students for improvement, however, the essay must be written entirely by the student, drawn from their original ideas.
• The organizers will hold all essays to common standards for plagiarism in academic assignments.
• The organizers and judges will take precautions to ensure that the registered student is the person writing the essay submitted and reserve the right to contact parents and teachers to confirm the originality of a student’s submission.
• Participants can submit one essay in the following categories: English, Kiswahili, Art, Kenyan Sign Language, braille, French, German, and Arabic.‍

DEC Prizes

• 1st Prize – A computing device and Scholarship funds (up to KES 50,000) .
• 2nd Prize – A computing device and Scholarship funds (up to KES 50,000) .
• 3rd Prize – A computing device and Scholarship funds (up to KES 50,000) .
• 4th and 5th Prize – A computing device.

DEC Results and Reports

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