For a long time, the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) has seemingly normalised the delay in the absorption of graduands from Teachers Training Colleges (TTCs) across the country, with some waiting as long as 10 years before being employed.
In contrast, university-trained teachers, who are often assigned to junior or senior schools, usually face much shorter waiting times, with some finding employment within just 12 months.
This disparity has raised concerns, particularly about the long delays experienced by TTC-trained educators, which can demoralise these professionals who play a key role in shaping students at the foundational stages of their education.
Speaking at Migori Teachers Training College on Wednesday, the Chairperson of the Kenya Teachers Colleges Principals Association (KTCPA), Wycliffe Wafula, called on the TSC to prioritize the employment of TTC graduates as a matter of urgency.
Wafula noted that the teachers being trained at their institutions are equipped with skills for the Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC), the new education model that the government has been working to implement for the past nine years.
“We appeal to the government to employ these teachers we have trained. The first cohort of CBC-trained teachers is graduating this year, having completed their training last year. It is our hope that they will be employed, which would encourage others who are training for the CBC,” said Wafula.
Wafula, who is also the Chief Principal of Kamwenje TTC, made these remarks during the KTCPA Annual General Meeting (AGM) at Migori TTC.
He emphasized that their graduates are the best human resource to drive the transition from the 8-4-4 education system to the CBC.
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“We are changing the education system. Our only message is that these are the right people to be employed to advance the CBC. They have been trained for it,” he said.
The KTCPA AGM was attended by 38 public TTCs and four privately-owned or faith-based TTCs from across the country.
Since the introduction of the CBC in 2016, the MoE has made efforts to periodically re-tool already employed teachers to handle the new education system.
These teachers were initially trained to teach under the 8-4-4 system, which is now being phased out.
The retooling exercises, which occur during school holidays, come at an extra cost to a country grappling with limited financial resources.
In the meantime, the principals have asked TSC to address the issue of understaffing in their institutions, particularly in technical subjects like Music, Art and Craft, Agriculture, and Home Science.
The shortage of teachers in these fields is exacerbated by the fact that most universities are not training students in these technical subjects.
“We have made recommendations to the TSC on how we can be assisted,” said Wafula.
KTCPA has also urged the TSC to urgently address the staffing shortage, especially considering the recent lowering of entry grades into TTCs.
This has led to an influx of new students, many of whom are determined to graduate with a Diploma in Primary Teacher Education after three years of study.
“We have had quite a number of students join us since the lowering of entry grades. Most colleges have over-enrolled, which has worsened the understaffing issue, though the situation varies from one college to the next,” said Wafula.
By Josiah Odanga
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