All high school teachers will be required to obtain a compulsory one-year teaching diploma before they can obtain teaching licenses. According to the new recommendations released by the Teachers Service Commission (TSC), all university graduates who want to teach will need to obtain a diploma in education.
The review of the TSC policy document entitled, Framework for Entry in the Teaching Service, training of university teachers, as we know it, will change dramatically.
This follows the revelation that the teacher’s employer has embarked on a transformation program, which will review the entry framework for teaching.
“All 8-4-4 students with a Competency Based Curriculum (CBC) must first study for a Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science for a period of three years focusing on core subjects and then, thereafter, obtain a Postgraduate Diploma in Education for one year of primary and secondary school teaching and SNE (Special Needs Education), ”explains the document.
This document, prepared by the Director of Quality Assurance and Standards at TSC, Dr Reuben Nthamburi, identifies a teacher employer’s plan to promote skills training.
“The Diploma in Education courses for CBC students at each level will be three years after 8-4-4 and high school as they will have time to specialize in content fields,” reads the article.
“There needs to be ways to teach teachers at Diploma level (ECDE, Junior and Senior Secondary, SNE).”
Another recommendation that the minimum qualification for teaching in Kenya at all levels be a diploma in education.
At the same time, admission to all diplomas and degrees in teacher education courses will be “on demand”, meaning that the number of teachers who graduate each year will be regulated.
The TSC also suggested that teachers should choose to teach at ECDE, junior and tertiary level.
“That there is a primary education diploma that will cover the required study / study areas required at the undergraduate and higher levels.”
University lecturers feel that this could be a wise implementation of the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) recommendations on budget cuts and other state-owned companies, which could include job cuts or redundancies as a R257 billion Kenya loan.
They say the move will result in thousands of education department coaches losing their jobs.
“In fact, according to us, it could be one of the steps to address the IMF report,” said Dr Itolondo.
Teachers in their union have vowed to withstand any structural changes without their involvement.
The secretary of UASU University of Kenyatta, Dr George Lukoye, said that although they did not agree with any of the changes, they just wanted to participate as key structures.
“It is no secret that Kenyatta University is facing a financial crisis. These financial risks are likely to be exacerbated by Covid-19. The union is looking forward to the IMF and the relevant government agencies conducting a thorough and thorough investigation to find that the university finds itself in this financial crisis, ”said Dr Lukoye.
In approving the Sh257 billion loan to Kenya, the IMF listed the top three universities among the nine state-owned enterprises (SOEs) set for change.
Although the report may name some universities, the three largest public universities are the University of Nairobi, Kenyatta University and Moi University.
The three universities are estimated to have more than 10,000 joint staff. The University of Nairobi has a huge salary bill worth Sh8 billion, followed by Kenyatta with about Sh5 billion and Moi with about Sh4 billion.
In a number of SOEs (State Enterprises), the Covid-19 shock has exacerbated the existing financial weakness. For example, public universities have registered long-term losses, “said the IMF report on Kenya, which was published on April 21.
Some of the recommendations:
All 8-4-4 students and CBC must first do a Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science Courses for a period of 3 years focusing on core subjects and then do a Postgraduate Diploma in Education for a period of one year.
Awareness of the Deans of Universities, the School of Education and the Principals of the Diploma Teacher Training Colleges through the Teacher Education Framework on the Requirements for Entering the Teaching Service.
Does it mean that the 3 years are not enough? I think this is burden to parents regarding school fees. Anyway,all teachers must be competent in their fields.