The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) is silently deploying practicing PTE teachers to secondary schools thus creating confusion among primary school teachers looking forward for promotion.

A section of primary school teachers say this years exercise is opaque unlike the previous ones where they first had to apply for the posts.

TSC advertised 1,000 deployment posts in 2019 and another 1,000 in September 2020. The Commission advertised 1,000 more slots for deployment last year.

However TSC has not advertised for the deployment posts this year but has continued to release deployment letters, though few, to some counties.

This week Nairobi county got five deployment letters and Nakuru county two with Kiambu, Kilifi, Makueni, Kajiado and Embu each getting three, raising eyebrows on the snail pace in the exercise.

Some of the deployment letters arrived at the counties together with the appointment letters for the new teacher recruits.

Sources say the Commission has generated a merit list from previous applications which it uses to deploy the PTE teachers to secondary schools.

TSC uses deployment as a form of promotion for primary school teachers who have furthered their studies.

However TSC is only deploying those who studied degree in secondary option. Others like those who studied diploma and degree in primary option or ECDE are not captured.

A total of 3,000 P1 graduate teachers were promoted to teach in secondary schools in the last three years.

Those deployed from primary school to teach in secondary schools start in job group C2 and later move to job group C3 after completing three years.

From July 2021 a deployed teacher in job group C2 takes home shs 34,955 at minimum in basic pay and shs 43,694 at maximum.

The teacher enjoys a commuter allowance of shs 5,000 a house allowance of shs 7,500 for those who are not in any municipality and a leave allowance of shs 6,000 paid once yearly. Those in hardship areas enjoy hardship allowance of shs 10,900.

According to TSC for teachers to be deployed to teach in secondary schools must meet these requirements;

i) Be a Kenyan citizen;

ii) Be a holder of a P1 Certificate;

iii) Be a holder of a Bachelor’s Degree in Education with 2 teaching subjects;

iv) Must have attained at least C+ (Plus) mean grade at Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education  (KCSE) or its equivalent and C+ (Plus) or it’s equivalent in the two teaching subjects;

v) Must be serving under Teachers Service Commission.

However after coming of the junior secondary school (JSS), TSC said the teacher should hold any of the following in order to be deployed to teach in such schools;

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

In addition to the above requirement the teacher;

Must have been trained in Secondary Teacher Education with at least two teaching subjects

Must have scored a mean grade of C+ (Plus) and above at KCSE

Must have scored at least C+ (Plus) and above at KCSE in the two teaching subjects.

Note Teachers who scored C (Plain) and below at KCSE and joined Universities and studied Bachelors degree in Education (Secondary option) are not eligible for deployment.

The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) is silently deploying practicing PTE teachers to secondary schools thus creating confusion among primary school teachers looking forward for promotion.

A section of primary school teachers say this years exercise is opaque unlike the previous ones where they first had to apply for the posts.

TSC advertised 1,000 deployment posts in 2019 and another 1,000 in September 2020. The Commission advertised 1,000 more slots for deployment last year.

However TSC has not advertised for the deployment posts this year but has continued to release deployment letters, though few, to some counties.

This week Nairobi county got five deployment letters and Nakuru county two with Kiambu, Kilifi, Makueni, Kajiado and Embu each getting three, raising eyebrows on the snail pace in the exercise.

Some of the deployment letters arrived at the counties together with the appointment letters for the new teacher recruits.

Sources say the Commission has generated a merit list from previous applications which it uses to deploy the PTE teachers to secondary schools.

TSC uses deployment as a form of promotion for primary school teachers who have furthered their studies.

However TSC is only deploying those who studied degree in secondary option. Others like those who studied diploma and degree in primary option or ECDE are not captured.

A total of 3,000 P1 graduate teachers were promoted to teach in secondary schools in the last three years.

Those deployed from primary school to teach in secondary schools start in job group C2 and later move to job group C3 after completing three years.

From July 2021 a deployed teacher in job group C2 takes home shs 34,955 at minimum in basic pay and shs 43,694 at maximum.

The teacher enjoys a commuter allowance of shs 5,000 a house allowance of shs 7,500 for those who are not in any municipality and a leave allowance of shs 6,000 paid once yearly. Those in hardship areas enjoy hardship allowance of shs 10,900.

According to TSC for teachers to be deployed to teach in secondary schools must meet these requirements;

i) Be a Kenyan citizen;

ii) Be a holder of a P1 Certificate;

iii) Be a holder of a Bachelor’s Degree in Education with 2 teaching subjects;

iv) Must have attained at least C+ (Plus) mean grade at Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education  (KCSE) or its equivalent and C+ (Plus) or it’s equivalent in the two teaching subjects;

v) Must be serving under Teachers Service Commission.

However after coming of the junior secondary school (JSS), TSC said the teacher should hold any of the following in order to be deployed to teach in such schools;

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

In addition to the above requirement the teacher;

Must have been trained in Secondary Teacher Education with at least two teaching subjects

Must have scored a mean grade of C+ (Plus) and above at KCSE

Must have scored at least C+ (Plus) and above at KCSE in the two teaching subjects.

Note Teachers who scored C (Plain) and below at KCSE and joined Universities and studied Bachelors degree in Education (Secondary option) are not eligible for deployment.