Despite paying heavily and going deep into their money to obtain higher academic papers, a portion of primary school teachers have been enduring some difficult times for quite some time.
The Teachers Service Commission stopped automatically promoting primary and secondary school teachers who upgraded their academic certificates in January 2014.
This has been the case since the government ordered TSC to halt all promotions based on academic credentials.
TSC has since implemented a more lucrative plan for teachers. It did away with Schemes of Service (SoS), which promised automatic promotion for teachers who pursued additional education.
Instead, TSC gave teachers Career Progression Guidelines (CPG) in place of SoS. The Commission is more concerned about teacher performance than academic papers, according to TSC CEO Nancy Macharia.
This is one of the reasons why, beginning in 2016, the Commission has focused more on developing and educating teachers on TPAD (Teacher Performance Appraisal and Development).
TSC has stated numerous times that CPG is superior to SoS and that it has ended teacher job stagnation.
The outrage from Diploma teachers and teachers who have updated their certifications, on the other hand, has raised questions about CPG’s effectiveness.
TSC has only sent the teachers a thank you note and acknowledgement letters after they submitted their certificates.
Only when TSC advertises for administrative promotional vacancies is when teachers use their degree certificates.
Teachers with Bachelors in Special Needs Education were eligible to apply for the advertised vacancies in September 2021, according to an advertisement for teacher promotion to administrative grades.
TSC, on the other hand, has continued to promote secondary school teachers by deploying them in secondary schools.
Furthermore, in order to be eligible for the degree secondary option, the deployed teachers must have a C+ in KCSE and a C+ in the teaching subjects.
This fiscal year (2021–2022), the commission has deployed 1,000 p1 graduate teachers to work in high schools.
TSC stated that the teachers will assist in ensuring a smooth transition from primary to secondary school. TSC offered 1,000 deployment positions in 2019 and 1,000 more in September of 2020. In July of 2021, the Commission offered 1,000 deployment positions for PTE certificate holders to apply for.
According to the Career Progression Guidelines for Instructors, the teachers deployed started at work grade C2 with a wage scale of 34,955 per month and would progress to job grade C3 after three years (CPG)
Unknown to many, there is a group of primary school teachers who enrolled in colleges to pursue a degree secondary option despite receiving only a C (plain) average in their KCSE exams.Universities such as Nairobi, Kenyatta, Pwani, and Mount Kenya registered and offered courses to students with a mean grade C (plain) in the KCSE as long as they held a PTE certificate during their time.
According to TSC CEO Nancy Macharia, at least 60,000 high school teachers would be trained in March and April this year in readiness for the junior secondary implementation.
