Free full access for every teacher until 1 January 2027 — no card needed

DARASA

CBC & 8-4-4 · One App

Run Your Classroom
Without the Paperwork

DARASA is an all-in-one classroom management app and set of teacher productivity tools for Kenya: a CBC and 8-4-4 gradebook, lesson planner, AI marking scheme generator, and parent communication platform.

Gradebook, lesson planning, AI-assisted marking, and parent communication for Kenyan teachers — from ECD to Form Four, CBC and 8-4-4 alike, and it keeps working offline once it's open, syncing when your signal returns.

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No card required · Free until 1 January 2027

DARASA at a Glance: Free Teacher Tools for Kenyan Schools

What it is: A classroom management web app for Kenyan teachers: gradebook, lesson planner, AI marking scheme generator, class teacher tools, and parent messaging.
Made by: Vertex Tech Solutions, for teachers in Kenya.
Levels: Pre-Primary 1 to Grade 12 for CBC, and Forms 3 and 4 for 8-4-4, in the same account.
Cost: Free for every teacher until 1 January 2027, no card needed. After that: a 7-day free trial, then the free Standard plan or Premium from Ksh 450 a month.
Works on: Android phones and other mobile devices, tablets, and computers, in your browser. Nothing to install.
Offline: Keeps working offline once it's open and syncs when you reconnect. Signing in, syncing, and the AI tools need internet.
AI marking: Scan or upload an exam and get a marking scheme to review, then download it as a PDF.
Support: support@reply.darasa.site or +254 751 936947. We typically respond within 1 business day.

Why Teachers Choose DARASA

Not just another lesson-plan app for Kenyan schools

Both Curricula, One App

CBC and 8-4-4 side by side — because most Kenyan schools are still running both until 2027, and switching apps between them isn't realistic.

AI That Writes Your Marking Scheme

Upload a photo, PDF, or Word file of an exam and get an AI-generated marking scheme in minutes — a draft you review and adjust, built for Kenyan teachers who need more than a lesson-planning tool.

Parents, One Tap Away

Message a parent's WhatsApp, SMS, or email straight from a student's record — no separate app, no exporting phone numbers.

Built for Real Connectivity

Keep working when the signal drops. Everything saves to your device first and syncs the moment you're back online.

AI Marking Scheme Generator for Kenya: Scan an Exam, Get a Marking Scheme

Writing a marking scheme by hand takes hours. Scan and upload the exam paper as a photo, PDF, or Word file — or paste in the questions — and DARASA drafts the full scheme for you to review and download as a PDF.

How Do I Generate a Marking Scheme?

Upload the exam

Add photos of the paper, a PDF, or a Word document — or paste the questions in.

DARASA works it out

The questions are read from your file and worked through step by step, built around Kenyan marking conventions for the subject.

Mark from a ready scheme

Get correct answers, mark breakdowns, and common mistakes, then download the scheme as a PDF.

Example of the format · illustrative question

Question 3 · 3 marks

Solve 3x + 5 = 20.

M1 3x = 20 − 5 (or 3x = 15)
M1 x = 15 ÷ 3
A1 x = 5

Common mistake: adding 5 to both sides instead of subtracting it.

Which Subjects Does It Work For?

Choose one of your subjects or type in any subject name, for both CBC and 8-4-4 classes. DARASA picks the marking style to suit it:

Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry: method and accuracy marks (M, A, B)
Biology, Agriculture, Home Science: point marking, one mark per valid point
English and Kiswahili: rubric marking for compositions, insha, and essays
History, Geography, CRE/IRE/HRE, Business Studies: point marking and essay rubrics
CBC subjects such as Integrated Science and Pre-Technical Studies: competency-based rubrics (EE, ME, AE, BE)

Always review before you mark. The scheme is generated by AI, which can make mistakes — especially with unclear photos — so check it against your own knowledge and adjust anything you'd change. The exam content you upload is processed by third-party AI providers (Cerebras and/or OpenRouter) to generate the scheme, so leave learners' personal details out of the paper. Details are in our Privacy Policy — and there's more on the 8-4-4 gradebook app page. Read the full guide to the AI marking scheme generator.

Works Offline When Your Signal Drops

DARASA is a gradebook app that keeps working offline once it's open. Signal isn't always reliable in a school compound, so DARASA saves your changes on your device first, then syncs to the cloud the moment you're back online — a dropped connection doesn't cost you your work.

Open DARASA while you have a connection, then keep working if the signal drops.
Changes you make offline stay on your device and sync automatically when you reconnect.
DARASA is a web app: use it in your browser on a phone, tablet, or computer — there's nothing to download or install.
Signing in, syncing across devices, and the AI tools (marking scheme generator, schemes of work) need an internet connection.

Offline Gradebook and Lesson Planner: What Works Without Internet

Which DARASA features work offline and which need an internet connection
What you're doing	Without internet
Recording marks and assessments	Works offline — saves on your device, syncs later
Taking the attendance register	Works offline — saves on your device, syncs later
Viewing and editing your class list and student details	Works offline — saves on your device, syncs later
Writing and editing lesson plans	Works offline — saves on your device, syncs later
Timetable and school calendar	Works offline — saves on your device, syncs later
Class officials, discipline records, and meeting notes	Works offline — saves on your device, syncs later
AI marking scheme generator	Needs internet
AI drafts of lesson plans and schemes of work	Needs internet
Uploading and opening files (Resources and planner documents)	Needs internet
Signing in, and syncing across your devices	Needs internet — sync catches up when you reconnect
Sending parent messages	WhatsApp and email need internet; SMS uses your phone network

Changes made offline sync automatically when you reconnect. Reconnect regularly, and avoid clearing your browser data before you do, because changes that haven't synced yet live only on that device. More on working offline.

Message Parents on WhatsApp, SMS, or Email — Privately

A parent communication app for teachers in Kenya — WhatsApp parent messaging, SMS, and email, with you in control of your students' data

WhatsApp parent communication: you send every message

DARASA opens WhatsApp, your SMS app, or your email app with the message ready to go. You read it and press send from your own phone or account — DARASA doesn't message parents on your behalf. Use numbers parents have shared with the school for communication.

Private by default

Each teacher's class data is private to their own account, protected by access controls in the database. Students' names, marks, and parent contacts aren't shared with other teachers.

Clear about the rules

Our Privacy Policy explains what we collect, which providers we work with, and your rights under Kenya's Data Protection Act, 2019 — including how to ask for your data to be deleted.

How parent messaging works

Everything a Kenyan Teacher Actually Needs

A Kenyan teacher app for the gradebook, lesson planner, marking, and parent messaging — CBC and 8-4-4 alike

Gradebook & CBC/8-4-4 Grading

A teacher gradebook app for Kenya, built as a gradebook for Kenyan schools that run both systems: a CBC gradebook that grades by strand and sub-strand, and an 8-4-4 gradebook that grades by subject and exam score, in the same class list.

Lesson Planner, Schemes of Work, Timetable & Calendar

A lesson planning app for Kenyan teachers that keeps your lesson plans, CBC schemes of work, weekly timetable, and school calendar in one place, whichever curriculum you teach.

AI Marking Scheme Generator

Upload a photo, PDF, or scan of an exam and DARASA's AI marking scheme generator drafts the marking scheme for you — correct answers, mark breakdowns, and common mistakes. It also helps fill in CBC schemes of work, term after term. Download the marking scheme as a PDF.

Class Teacher Tools & Attendance

A school attendance tracking app Kenya class teachers can use daily, plus discipline records, class officials, and meeting notes in one place.

Class Performance Insights

See your class average, your best students, the most improved learners, and who needs help — worked out from the assessments you record.

Teaching Resources

Keep revision notes, official documents, and reference materials for each class in one searchable library — upload PDF, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, text, or image files.

Parent Messaging — WhatsApp, SMS & Email

Message a parent straight from a student's record over WhatsApp, SMS, or email — no exporting phone numbers. It opens in your own WhatsApp, SMS, or email app, so you read and send every message yourself.

Works Offline, Syncs When Connected

Built for real Kenyan connectivity. Everything saves to your device first and syncs the moment you're back online — no lost work when the signal drops.

Lesson Planner for Kenyan Teachers: CBC and 8-4-4 Lesson Plans, Schemes of Work, Timetable and Calendar

DARASA is a lesson planner for Kenyan teachers that covers the whole term: CBC lesson plans and 8-4-4 lesson plans, schemes of work for Kenyan schools, a weekly timetable, and a school calendar in the same place.

CBC lesson plans and 8-4-4 lesson plans

CBC lesson plans for Kenya use the strand, sub-strand, learning outcomes, and a key inquiry question. 8-4-4 lesson plans use topic and sub-topic. Add the introduction, lesson development, conclusion, resources, and assignments.

AI drafts, you decide

Choose a strand from the official KICD list where it's available and let AI draft the rest of the lesson plan. You review and adjust it before you teach from it.

Schemes of work for Kenya: CBC and 8-4-4

Draft a term's scheme of work using KICD's official strands and sub-strands where they're available, or in the 8-4-4 topic and sub-topic format, then edit it and download it as a PDF. A scheme of work plans a whole term week by week; a lesson plan details a single lesson.

Weekly timetable and school calendar

Build your Monday-to-Friday timetable with lessons, meetings, and exams linked to a class and subject. Keep term dates, national exams, activities, and holidays in the school calendar.

Tick off lessons and reflect

Mark lessons as completed and write a short self-evaluation afterwards: were the objectives achieved, what worked, and what to change next time.

Bring your own documents

Already have a lesson plan, timetable, or calendar as a PDF, Word, Excel, or image file? Upload it and keep it with your planner.

Read more: CBC lesson planner · Schemes of work

Try it free

Class Teacher Tools for Kenya: Class List, Attendance, Performance and Parent Communication

Set one of your classes as your class-teacher class and run it from a single hub — a school attendance tracking app, class register, and parent communication app for Kenyan teachers in one.

Class list

Admission number, full name, parent contact, optional medical notes, and school status for every learner in your class.

Attendance register

Take the register by date: mark everyone present in one tap, then adjust anyone who's late, excused, or absent. See each learner's attendance rate.

Performance insights

See cross-subject performance, the class average, your best students, the most improved, and learners who need help — worked out from the assessments you record.

Subjects and assessments

Add the subjects your class takes and create assessments. The marks you enter feed the performance view.

Class officials

Appoint class officials by role, such as a dining captain, and keep the list up to date.

Discipline records

Log each issue and the action taken, and copy a ready-made SMS or WhatsApp message to send to the parent.

Parent and class meetings

Log meetings with notes, so what was agreed is written down.

Message parents

Message the whole class or only selected parents on WhatsApp, SMS, or email, with templates for general updates, meeting invitations, fee reminders, and performance concerns.

Download as PDF

Download any tab — class list, performance, attendance, and more — as a PDF.

Try it free

Teaching Resources for Kenyan Teachers: Every Class's Notes and Documents in One Place

A resource library for each class, so revision notes, official documents, and reference materials sit in one place instead of scattered across phones and flash disks.

A library for every class

Each class has its own resources, so the right material is easy to find when you need it.

Upload almost anything

Add PDF, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, text, or image files — or write a note straight into DARASA.

Sorted by category and subject

File each item as revision notes, an official document, or reference material, and tag it to a subject.

Search, view, download

Search by title, switch between grid and list views, and download a file whenever you need it.

Alongside your lessons

Resources sit next to your planner and gradebook, so notes and reference material stay tied to the class you teach.

Stored privately

Files are kept in private storage under your account and opened through short-lived secure links — they aren't public web pages.

CBC vs 8-4-4 Grading: How the Two Systems Actually Differ

Kenyan curriculum grading works very differently under 8-4-4 and CBC. Under 8-4-4, learners are graded almost entirely on periodic exams — CATs, mid-terms, and end-terms — scored numerically or by letter grade, building up to the KCSE exam administered by KNEC, the Kenya National Examinations Council. It's straightforward to grade, but it says little about a learner's progress between exams. See how DARASA's 8-4-4 gradebook app handles this end to end.

CBC and 8-4-4 curriculum grading software has to work differently for CBC, because CBC itself works differently. So how does CBC grading work in Kenya? Instead of one exam score, teachers assess learners against the specific strands and sub-strands set out in the official curriculum designs published by KICD, the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development, using performance levels rather than a single mark. From Grade 10, learners also choose one of three Senior School CBC pathways — STEM, Social Sciences, or Arts and Sports Science — which shapes which subjects they take for the rest of secondary school. DARASA's CBC lesson planner is built directly on this structure.

Most Kenyan schools are running both systems side by side until the last 8-4-4 cohorts finish Form Four, which means most teachers need software that actually understands the difference — not just two names for the same gradebook. DARASA grades CBC by strand and sub-strand, and 8-4-4 by subject and exam score, in the same gradebook — a CBC gradebook and an 8-4-4 gradebook for Kenyan schools that share one class list — and helps with how to fill CBC schemes of work and 8-4-4 schemes of work correctly, term after term.

The 8-4-4 grading system compared with CBC grading
Compared	8-4-4	CBC
Structure	8 years primary, 4 years secondary, 4 years university	2 years pre-primary, 6 years primary, 3 years junior school, 3 years senior school, 3 years tertiary
How learners are graded	Periodic exams — CATs, mid-terms, and end-terms — scored as marks or letter grades	Continuous assessment against strands and sub-strands, using performance levels rather than a single mark
Grading scale	Marks out of 100, letter grades from A to E, and a mean grade	Four performance levels — EE, ME, AE, BE — split into eight sub-levels (EE1 to BE2) at national assessment level
National assessments	KCSE, administered by KNEC at the end of Form Four	KPSEA at the end of Grade 6 and KJSEA at the end of Grade 9, then Senior School assessments
Senior secondary	Subjects chosen in Form 3 and 4 alongside the compulsory core	From Grade 10: STEM, Social Sciences, or Arts and Sports Science pathways
In DARASA	Graded by subject and exam score	Graded by strand and sub-strand

Want the detail? Read our guide to CBC strand-based grading explained.

Get Started in 3 Steps

Signing up takes under a minute, and you can add your classes whenever you're ready.

Sign Up

Get free full access in under a minute — no card, no trial limit, until 1 January 2027.

Set Up Your Classes

Add your streams, students, and subjects — or import an existing class list.

Start Teaching Smarter

Plan lessons, mark exams, track attendance, and message parents, all from one place.

Simple Pricing

Free full access for every teacher until 1 January 2027 — no card needed. After that, continue on the free Standard plan or subscribe: Ksh 450 a month, Ksh 1,150 a term, or Ksh 3,100 a year.

Monthly

Ksh 450

per month

Ksh 15/day

Popular

Termly

Ksh 1,150

per term

Best for a school term

Yearly

Ksh 3,100

per year

Best value — save the most

M-Pesa Airtel Money Bank

See what each plan includes

Built for Every County in Kenya

DARASA is designed around how Kenyan schools actually run, not a generic template. Whether you're teaching in Nairobi, Mombasa, Kisumu, Nakuru, or a rural school in any of Kenya's 47 counties, the same gradebook, lesson planner, and AI marking scheme generator work the same way — your work saves to your device first, so a weak signal doesn't mean lost work. Curriculum content follows KICD's official designs, assessments align with what KNEC expects at national transition points, and the app fits around a Teachers Service Commission (TSC) teacher's actual daily workload — one class, one gradebook, one place to plan, mark, and message parents. It's a free trial school management app Kenya teachers can start using in minutes, no card required.

Frequently Asked Questions About DARASA

Straight answers about pricing, CBC and 8-4-4 support, the AI marking scheme generator, working offline, and your students' data

What is DARASA?

DARASA is an all-in-one classroom management app for Kenyan teachers. It combines a gradebook, lesson planner, AI marking scheme generator, class teacher tools, and parent messaging in one web app, for CBC and 8-4-4 classes from pre-primary to Form 4. It is made by Vertex Tech Solutions, and it saves your work on your device first so a weak signal does not cost you your marks.

How much does DARASA cost?

Right now, DARASA is completely free for every teacher until 1 January 2027, with full access and no card needed. After that, every account starts with a 7-day free trial with full access, and you can then continue on the free Standard plan or subscribe: Ksh 450 a month, Ksh 1,150 a term, or Ksh 3,100 a year. You can pay by M-Pesa, Airtel Money, or bank transfer.

How much does DARASA cost after January 2027?

Until 1 January 2027 DARASA is free for every teacher, with full access and no card needed. After that, every account starts with a 7-day free trial with full access, and you can then continue on the free Standard plan or subscribe: Ksh 450 a month, Ksh 1,150 a term, or Ksh 3,100 a year. You can pay by M-Pesa, Airtel Money, or bank transfer.

How do I sign up for DARASA?

Tap Sign In or Get Free Full Access, choose to create an account, and register with your email and a password, or with your Google account. If you use email, DARASA sends a 6-digit code to confirm it. Signing up takes under a minute, with no card and no school approval needed. Then add your classes — type in your streams and students, or upload a class list (PDF or Word) and check it before importing — and you can start straight away.

Does DARASA support both CBC and 8-4-4?

Yes. You can mark each class as CBC or 8-4-4, from pre-primary to Form 4, and DARASA grades, plans, and reports for that class accordingly. CBC classes are graded by strand and sub-strand, and 8-4-4 classes by subject and exam score. Lesson plans and schemes of work follow the same split: CBC uses strands, sub-strands, and key inquiry questions, while 8-4-4 uses topics and sub-topics. Many schools are running both until the last 8-4-4 cohorts finish Form Four, so you can teach both in one account.

How do I generate a marking scheme in DARASA?

Open AI Marking, name the exam, choose the subject and the curriculum (CBC or 8-4-4), then either paste the questions in or upload a photo, PDF, or Word file of the paper. DARASA reads the questions, works out the answers step by step, and drafts a marking scheme with the correct answers, the mark breakdown, and common mistakes, built around Kenyan marking conventions for the subject. Review and adjust it, then download it as a PDF. It takes minutes instead of the hours it takes to write one by hand.

Does DARASA work offline?

Yes, once DARASA is open. Your changes are saved on your device first and sync to the cloud automatically when you're back online, so a dropped signal doesn't cost you your work. Open DARASA while you have a connection, then keep going. You do need internet to sign in, to sync across devices, and for the AI tools such as the marking scheme generator and schemes of work.

Does DARASA work on Android phones?

Yes. DARASA is a web app, so it works in the browser on Android phones and other mobile devices, as well as tablets and computers. There is nothing to download from an app store: open it in Chrome or another modern browser, sign in, and your classes are there on every device.

Is my student data safe in DARASA?

Each teacher's data is private to their own account and protected by access controls in the database, so other teachers cannot see your students' names, marks, or parent contacts. Uploaded resources are kept in private storage. When you use the AI tools, the exam content you upload is sent to third-party AI providers (Cerebras and/or OpenRouter) to generate the scheme, so leave learners' personal details out of exam papers. Our Privacy Policy explains what we collect, who we work with, your rights under Kenya's Data Protection Act, 2019, and how to ask for your data to be deleted.

Can multiple teachers from the same school use DARASA?

Yes. Each teacher signs up for their own account, with no school approval needed, and each teacher's classes, students, and marks stay private to them. DARASA does not have a shared school licence or admin dashboard at the moment. If you're a head teacher or deputy head interested in DARASA for your staff, get in touch through our Contact page.

See all 29 questions

About DARASA

DARASA is a classroom management app and teacher productivity platform made by Vertex Tech Solutions for teachers in Kenya. It is built around KICD's curriculum designs for CBC, with 8-4-4 classes supported until the last cohorts finish Form Four.

support@reply.darasa.site

Phone

+254 751 936947

We typically respond within 1 business day. Read more about DARASA, or use our Contact page.

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A free teacher app for Kenya until 1 January 2027: a free gradebook and lesson planner for Kenyan teachers, no card needed.

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Run Your Classroom Without the Paperwork