The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) may be forced to reconsider its position as legislatures take the Commission head on regarding teacher qualifications in employment and promotions.
The Members of Parliament (Mps), now want TSC to allow teachers who scored KCSE mean grade C (plain) or below and acquired Diploma’s, Post graduate Diploma’s and Degree’s from various accredited learning institutions to be promoted and deployed.
The law makers argue that TSC cannot trash qualifications which universities agreed and led to the teachers to acquire the higher academic papers.
“Look at the kind of salaries teachers earn, If someone can sacrifice part of that salary to improve his or her education it doesn’t make sense that once you complete then that very paper you toiled so hard , four years plus, to get, that it doesn’t add any value to your life,” said Suba Mp John Mbadi earlier today in Parliament.
Mbadi said it is unacceptable for teachers to retire with their papers they invested heavily to acquire.
ODM nominated Mp Wilson Sossion had filed a petition (004/2022) in Parliament thwarting TSC move to block teachers with mean C (plain) and below from promotion.
The petition subject : REFUSAL BY THE TEACHERS SERVICE COMMISSION TO ACKNOWLEDGE UNDERGRADUATES, GRADUATES AND POST GRADUATES QUALIFICATIONS ATTAINED BY INSERVICE TEACHERS FROM RECOGNIZED UNIVERSITIES.
Sossion and other Mps argue that TSC has no power to regulate entry grade to universities and colleges and so its out of order to bar teachers from promotion and employment.
Mbadi says their should be no other body to trash the minimum entry requirements set by universities and colleges that offer training.
The lawmaker says when one makes a decision to further their education they invest heavily and this cannot be taken lightly not even with TSC.
Mbadi wants the problem solved once and for all even if it means allocating more resources. He asked the Education Committee members to look into the matter deeply even if it means new budget allocation for teachers.
“If there is budget allocation that may be needed to solve this issue let it be submitted so that we can show respect to our teachers,” said Mbadi
Nyaribari Chache Mp, Tongi Richard, also supported the petition by Wilson Sossion saying teachers need to be respected and not punished.
“We would not have doctors and professionals we have in Kenya if it were not for teachers. We all fail exams at some point in time depending on circumstances at that time. If a teacher has gone back to school because he or she has realized the opportunity and value they would add to Kenyans they should not be punished rather rewarded,” said Tongi.
In December last year during the Kenya Primary School Heads Association (Kepsha) conference in Mombasa, the Commission Deputy Director of Staffing Antonia Lentoijoni said TSC wont allow teachers with grade C (plain) and below to teach in secondary schools.
She said teachers who did not attain a mean grade C+ in the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) exam will not teach in secondary schools even if they had attained a degree later.
Lentoijoni added that, all secondary school teachers would only be allowed to teach subjects for which they scored a C+ and above in KCSE.
This is also applied with primary school teachers who would only be allowed to teach subjects they scored a C plain in their KCSE exam. She said this would improve the quality of education in Kenya.
She said the bar was raised by the Commission to improve the quality of education, following new challenges emerging in society.
“The Teachers Service Commission has raised the entry point of teaching in the country to have the right kind of people to offer quality education to our children,” said Lentoijoni.
The decision automatically locked out teachers who scored C- or C and have degrees from going to teach in secondary school, despite a suggestion by Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut) Secretary-General Collins Oyuu that teachers in primary school be allowed to teach Grade 7 and 8 in junior secondary school because several of them have masters degrees.
Oyuu’s plea to TSC to allow primary school teachers with C (plain) and degrees to teach in junior secondary school was rejected.
Currently there are thousands of primary school teachers in TSC payroll who are suffering silently despite investing heavily to acquire higher academic papers.
These are primary school teachers with the following qualifications;
1) Diploma and Degree in Special Needs Education
2) Diploma and Degree in Early Childhood Development Education
3) Diploma and Degree in Education (Primary option)
4) Diploma in Education (Secondary option)
5) Degree in Education (Secondary option) but lacking C+ at KCSE or C+ in teaching subjects
The coming of Career Progression Guidelines (CPG) which ended the Schemes of Service (SoS) and the Teacher Performance Appraisal and Development (TPD) have added salt to the wounds of the teachers.
The teachers only receive acknowledgement letters after submitting their new certificates to the Commission.
Currently only promotes PTE teachers with mean grade C+ (plus) and above to teach in secondary schools.
The teachers must also have scored at least C+ (plus) in their teaching subjects. Once deployed the teachers start at job group C2 and later move to grade C3 after completing three years.
The Commission CEO Dr. Nancy Macharia said academic papers will no longer be the basis for teacher promotion. She said teacher performance is key for any meaningful promotion.
In July last year the Commission launched Teacher Professional Development (TPD) which it said will form part of teacher promotion.
Teachers are required to pay sh. 6,000 yearly for the training which takes 30 years.
Teacher will also be issued with a teaching license after every five years and only after successfully taking the TPD modules.
While in Mombasa, Lentoijoni said teachers with the qualification that TSC had approved were the right kind of people who will ensure quality education to the children.
“These are the people with the ability to offer quality education for our children,” she said.
Lentoijoni said the commission trained 28,000 teachers in the last few years to address the shortage of teachers.
She said Kenyan children deserved quality education and that was why the bar had to be raised by the commission.
Letoijoni, who thanked the government for its continued response to the shortage of teachers in the country, however, expressed happiness that at least there was some relief on the shortage of teachers.
She said TSC had now embarked on a new system of recruitment of teachers by first engaging those who want to be teachers as interns who were assigned to experienced teachers for mentorship.
“We will lobby for more money to recruit more teachers,” she said.
The Kenyan Education system is not fair ! I am Trained Teacher secondary option with a bachelor’s degree from a recognized University in kenya but my only mistake is that I do not have a c stand in one of the teaching subject. Mean grade above c plus the other teaching subject above c plus. Kenyan Education a I repeat not fair endelea tu kuteza Wakenya Cc Tcs
Teachers handed value but tsc can’t see this .we used the coins that we earn strain ing our families all in vain.teachers suffering commission frustrated us.we r still doing our best.mungu zaidia
No problem I wonder why I wasted my time training to be a primary teacher heri ningeanza biashara na hizo doh zangu mungu tu anisaidie
The worse commission ever in Kenya.
Those with master’s ?
Kenyan teachers service commission is not fair at all….most teachers lacking C+in their mean grade but with a bachelors or diploma are really suffering because TSC cannot recognize them….I regret this!!!
Teachers’are totally victimized despite of their endless effort to enhance quality education. Tsc Mungu anawaona
This is a clear indication that TSC has no program of activities. One CEO would wake up from slumber & implement the day dreams. TSC being a giant commission, entrusted with well over 300,000 heads should not be run by guess work & try and error basis.
The same way Fred Matiangi frustrated teachers who acquired further education is exactly the same way he has done to graduate police officers. I am a police officer and I understand the pain from the teachers who acquired further education and we’re denied promotions, after the Salary of graduate police constables was slashed in November 2021, upto date we are earnings Negative salaries ( Dec, Jan and Feb). I joined the National police service as a graduate and my salary was upgraded as per the existing policies, my job group was designated ‘ ‘J’ graduate police constable’ . Police officers who also acquired degrees’ after enlistment were also placed in the same job group ‘J’ regardless of thier ranks ( Corporal, sergeant and Senior Sergeant) they were recognized as graduate police constables , whose salary scale is equivalent to those paid to fresh graduate entry in the public service and also the same job group as Police inspectors. The salary upgrades for graduate police constables were stopped after Career progression guidelines were formulated and introduced in the National police service in 2015 by the NPSC in order to discourage police officers from acquiring further education, since a graduate police constables from the lowest rank of Constable job group (F) can directly be promoted to job group (J) skipping the ranks of Corporal (G), Sergeant (H) and senior sergeant (I). Those of us who benefited from the salary upgrade continued enjoying the salary until 2018 February when the then chairman NPSC Johnston Kavuludi, slashed our salaries. Kavuludi realized his mistake and by March 2018 he released a press briefing acknowledging that graduate police constable’ salaries are legally protected . The chairman of NPSC and the IG Mutyambai with the blessings of CS Matiangi slashed our Salaries after intentionally and unlawfully misinterpreting a court of appeal ruling against a High Court decision that stated orders which stated that they were supposed to place all graduate police officers in job group (J). The court of appeal decision only stayed ( placed aside) the court order of the high court to pay all graduates the same, this was after graduate police officers who acquired further education AFTER the Career progression guidelines of 2015 were locked out of Salary upgrade. Fred Matiangi and fellow enemies of progress in the National police service commission and National police service top leaders then shamelessly went ahead and slashed the salaries of graduate police constables who benefited from salary upgrade BEFORE the career progression guidelines of 2015. Graduate police constables whose salaries were slashed went to ELRC which issued Orders on 15/12/21 that our salaries to be reinstated pending hearing and determination of the matter. The NPSC and the IG who are drunk with power have ignored the orders and are currently in contempt of court, the matter is coming up for hearing on 21/02/22. Currently over 1000 graduate police officers are suffering and on the brinks of depression after the Salary slash Hypocritically NPSC is seeking for more funds From the Treasury for Mental Health.
There are several secondary teachers with c plain who joined diploma colleges like kagumo and are now those secondary schools teaching. With us who had c plain and could not get fee for diploma college ended in p1 colleges and now we are seen not to be fit even after furthering our studies. So does it mean those already in secondary and had that c plain will also be deployed to primary?
I have never understood how a p1 teacher with a mean of C plain in Kcse would secure admittion to a recognized university for a degree (secondary option), Invest so much money(sometimes through loans) to better themselves, graduate with first class or even second upper, then boom! u can’t practice anyone in Kenya. What kind of systems are these?
Tsc Should Focus On The Teaching Subjects Not The Overall Mean Grade. I scored A “B” In Both Agriculture And Biology And Have An Overall Mean Of C I Was Interested In Pursuing AgriBio Combination But I Can’t Because Of The So Called Minimum Entry Thing
God bless these MP’s, and may Go hear this.
God see through the teachers as suffering is subjected to them
I graduated 2012 with P1 certificate of 24 points!!! Since then have struggled to get tsc employment all i vain!! My family expected me to get a job and help brohers and sister!! I sold everything our parents left for us after they all died in 1998!!! Tsc is punishing teachers especially from poor families!!!????