Education Updates
  • Home
  • Education
  • Politics
  • Entertainment
  • Business
No Result
View All Result
Education Updates
  • Home
  • Education
  • Politics
  • Entertainment
  • Business
No Result
View All Result
Education Updates
No Result
View All Result

Education Updates » Education » High Number of Teachers Find Consolation in Alcohol as life Becomes tough

High Number of Teachers Find Consolation in Alcohol as life Becomes tough

Felix Mogendi by Felix Mogendi
November 13, 2021
Reading Time: 4 mins read
0
343
SHARES
2.6k
VIEWS
Share on WhatsAppShare on FacebookShare on Twitter

The 21st-century Kenyan teacher is a worker relentlessly under siege—and from many horizons.

As the government fights to admit more learners through the Universal Primary Education Programme and the 100 per cent transition, as it struggles to implement a new curriculum, wrestles with staff shortages and grapples with funding challenges, the hapless anonymous teacher takes the heat with the timidity of a pangolin.

As the Covid-19 pandemic strikes and halts learning for close to a year and then retreats and schools are up and running again, the teacher finds himself in the crosshairs, struggling to make up for the lost time by completing syllabus, guiding and counselling the learners, setting and marking exams, and dealing with indiscipline.

You Might Also Like

RELEASE OF FSE FUNDS TO JSS FOR FIRST TERM -2023

In 2023, KNEC to Grade KCSE using one language and Mathematics.

September 27, 2023
Easy way To Check TSC Employment Status

TSC to start teachers’ training who will be incharge of Career Guidance

September 6, 2023
RELEASE OF FSE FUNDS TO JSS FOR FIRST TERM -2023

MoE Advertises 1,000 Internship Vacancies; How to Apply, Requirements & Deadline

September 5, 2023
Panic Among Students as Loan Request Portal Fails

Panic Among Students as Loan Request Portal Fails

September 1, 2023

And as the ever more mischievous and erratic learner protests and begins setting schools on fire, the teacher again finds himself seated in an electric chair hoping for the best while taking in wave after wave of criticism and blame from all and sundry.

For the teacher, every day is a never-ending cycle of dealing with a demanding employer, an insouciant parent, an erratic learner and an unforgiving workload in an emotional roller-coaster ride. For teachers in their late 40s or 50s who started their careers in the early 1990s or late 80s, the transformation in the working environment has been staggering.

“The modern-day student is more disrespectful to authority, is more exposed to the world through social media and impatient with controlled environments such as the school. In contrast, the student of the 80s was more self-driven, feared authority and was generally cooperative and provincial,” says B N Mwako, a secondary school teacher who expects to retire next year.

She says the Teachers Service Commission (TSC), was in the 80s and 90s ‘opaque and unfriendly’ and was aptly nicknamed ‘Teachers’ Suffering Centre’. “One would spend days on end at the TSC headquarters in Nairobi trying to sort out simple issues such as transfers, entry returns known as casualties and seeking maternity leave, etc. The TSC officials were rude and unyielding and we dreaded dealing with them,” she says, adding that the TSC of today is different because almost everything can be sorted out online and with predictable timelines.

Yet for Peter Kinuthia, who joined the profession two years ago, the biggest headache is the learner. “Having been educated in a small private school from pre-primary to secondary, I had no idea teaching in a public school would be this difficult. The learners don’t fear teachers and they make judgments about you even before you acquaint yourself with the school environment. They can make your life hell if you lack confidence,” he says.

These two teachers lay bare the different realities that teachers grapple with depending on their ages, yet they both agree on the various hidden stresses and challenges that the public never gets to appreciate.

The gravity of the situation became clear early this week when TSC issued guidelines to head-teachers on how to deal with alcoholism at work, including enrolling affected teachers in rehabilitation institutions.

It blamed the vice for absenteeism and urged school heads, teachers and spouses to weigh in with psychosocial support, and the teachers given a 90-day leave. Though TSC did not give figures, the fact that it chose to go public suggests the problem may be getting out of hand

But TSC will need to go further and engage in intensive aftercare after rehabilitation to keep the teachers in school and doing meaningful work.

Few studies have been carried out to measure the symptoms of stress, anxiety, and depression among teachers but anecdotal evidence shows emotional upheaval that may begin to manifest itself in increased domestic violence and divorce–much more like in the Kenya Police Service.

The Covid-19 school closures opened many parents and the society in general to the role teachers play in keeping children busy and out of trouble, which should lead to a deeper appreciation of the profession.

Despite the tough working environment, however, teachers have a lot to be thankful for in higher salaries than two decades ago, a more responsive employer whose clear-cut policies on promotions, transfers, discipline and pay rise can only be something to celebrate especially when compared to the languid and prosaic practices of past decades.

Policy wonks and education mandarins will, however, need to give teachers a friendly working environment and the support they need to fulfill their critical mission as educators and mentors.

A starting point would be bridging the staff shortage gap—estimated to be about 100,000—to ease the workload and lead to more individualised learning.

SendShare137Tweet86
Previous Post

Kisii School Jobs Vacancies – November 2021:Requirements, Deadline

Next Post

Principals issue a tough warning to CS Education Prof. magoha

Related News

RELEASE OF FSE FUNDS TO JSS FOR FIRST TERM -2023
Education

In 2023, KNEC to Grade KCSE using one language and Mathematics.

September 27, 2023
Easy way To Check TSC Employment Status
TSC

TSC to start teachers’ training who will be incharge of Career Guidance

September 6, 2023
RELEASE OF FSE FUNDS TO JSS FOR FIRST TERM -2023
Education

MoE Advertises 1,000 Internship Vacancies; How to Apply, Requirements & Deadline

September 5, 2023
Panic Among Students as Loan Request Portal Fails
Universities

Panic Among Students as Loan Request Portal Fails

September 1, 2023
FINAL CIRCULAR ON TEACHERS SALARY REVIEW 2023
TSC

FINAL CIRCULAR ON TEACHERS SALARY REVIEW 2023

August 31, 2023
KUPPET supports the Decision to Raise Salaries for Teachers
TSC

Breaking News:Teachers unions seal salary deal with TSC

August 28, 2023

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

I agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.

Trending Articles

RELEASE OF FSE FUNDS TO JSS FOR FIRST TERM -2023

In 2023, KNEC to Grade KCSE using one language and Mathematics.

by Felix Mogendi
September 27, 2023
0

A new grading scheme has been implemented by the Ministry of Education for the KCSE Exam in 2023. Ezekiel Machogu,...

Key RolesTSC Is Set to Lose in New Proposals

List of Teachers Removed and Deregistered From the Register of teachers

by Felix Mogendi
September 23, 2023
1

List of Teachers Removed and Deregistered From the Register of teachers The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) has deregistered 73 teachers following several...

Easy way To Check TSC Employment Status

TSC to start teachers’ training who will be incharge of Career Guidance

by Felix Mogendi
September 6, 2023
0

The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) is about to begin training teachers who will be in charge of offering career assistance...

RELEASE OF FSE FUNDS TO JSS FOR FIRST TERM -2023

MoE Advertises 1,000 Internship Vacancies; How to Apply, Requirements & Deadline

by Felix Mogendi
September 5, 2023
0

The Ministry of Education (MoE), State Department for Basic Education has announced 1,000 internship vacancies  under the Digital Literacy Programme...

Panic Among Students as Loan Request Portal Fails

Panic Among Students as Loan Request Portal Fails

by Felix Mogendi
September 1, 2023
0

Panic Among Students as Loan Request Portal Fails After the portals for loans and scholarships crashed, the situation just developed...

FINAL CIRCULAR ON TEACHERS SALARY REVIEW 2023

FINAL CIRCULAR ON TEACHERS SALARY REVIEW 2023

by Felix Mogendi
August 31, 2023
0

IMPLEMENTATION OF PHASE 1 OF THE THIRD REMUNERATION CYCLE FOR TEACHERS 1.Introduction On August 28, 2023, the Teachers Service Commission...

  • Home
  • Privacy Policy
  • DMCA
  • Terms of Use

© 2021 Education Updates – Design with 💖 by Website Design Kenya.

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Education
  • Politics
  • Entertainment
  • Business

© 2021 Education Updates – Design with 💖 by Website Design Kenya.