Thousands of primary and secondary school teachers will be transferred to teach in junior secondary schools as part of a procedure started by the Teachers Service Commission (TSC).
A plan that was unveiled by the Commission will see a sizable number of instructors hired to teach at junior secondary schools beginning in December of this year.
The junior secondary school part consists of students in Grades 7, 8, and 9. In January 2023, the present sixth-graders will transition to junior secondary.
After taking their last exam in primary school this November, the sixth-graders will enter junior high.
The Kenya Primary School Education Assessment (KPSEA) exams will take place from November 28 through November 30, 2022.
Details indicate that junior high teachers will only be permitted to teach if they possess the necessary credentials.
Next year, teachers from special schools, elementary schools, and both will work together to instruct the first-year students in Grade 7.
Primary school instructors who wish to transfer to junior high school must possess at least one of the following credentials:
1. Diploma in Education
2. Higher National Diploma in Education
3. Bachelors Degree in Education
4. Post Graduate Diploma in Education
5. Masters Degree or PhD in Education
The teachers also need to have at least two teaching topics and a secondary teacher education.
Additionally, the teacher must have earned at least a C+ (Plus) in each of the two teaching topics in the KCSE, as well as a mean grade of C+ (Plus) or above.
Teachers who received a C (Plain) or lower on the KCSE and attended a university to pursue a Bachelor of Arts in Education (Secondary option) will not be eligible for deployment, according to TSC.
A distinct advantage will go to those who have had training in competency-based curriculum (CBC). All primary school educators who participated in CBC trainings are listed in the Commission’s database.
However, only in locations where there is a severe scarcity of junior secondary-trained secondary school teachers will primary school instructors be used to educate students in Grade 7.
In April of this year, at least 60,000 secondary school teachers received training in managing Grades Seven and Eight.
Additionally, in December of last year, the Commission trained 120,000 primary school teachers to work with students in grades six.
The majority of primary school teachers who are qualified to work in secondary schools will be transferred this year and in the first few months of next year as the Commission anticipates a significant hiring drive and staff balancing.
At least 30,000 primary and secondary school teachers must be hired by TSC by January of the following year.
The majority of the P1 teachers TSC proposes to relocate to teach in 8.4.4 secondary schools may surprise those who have been complaining about the deployment procedure’ poor pace in the past.
Additionally, the Commission has scheduled 116,024 high school teachers for training in December of this year. According to TSC, instructors will receive training in advance of the Grade 9 class.
Whether the training will take place is unclear. This comes after the government moved to reduce the TSC’s annual funding of Sh1.02 billion for preparing teachers for the new curriculum.
