TSC has introduced a new icon TPD Teacher professional Appraisal and Development (TPAD) which is different from Teacher Professional Development (TPD) module.
In TPD TPAD a teacher is required to choose a University for intervention of GAPS in the TPAD. Besides the KSHs 6000 for TPD modules, teacher will incur extra cost for TPD TPAD interventions.
The Teacher Service Commission (TSC) two months ago issued a statement directing all teachers to enrol for mandatory Teacher Professional Development (TPD) modules in some specific institutions which see their certificates renewed after every 5 years.
To enroll on the program, each teacher is required to pay sh 6000 each year for the modules. The teachers did not welcome the directives from their employer because according to them it contradicts the labour laws of Kenya.
According to the labour look law, any employer who wishes to train the employees should incur the cost.
Therefore as per the law, the teacher service commission is supposed to incur the cost of training teachers in the refresher courses.
If TSC agrees to incur the cost of training, then teachers can have a sigh of relief because they were staring at salary deductions annually until the completion of the modules in 30 years time.
The first intake is expected to kick off come December this year.
Despite the directive from the commission, teachers seem to be reluctant in enrollment of the expected exercise. TSC latest reports have revealed that only a total of 20,000 teachers have registered for the December TPD training.
With the introduction of TPD in Tpad tool, teachers have no option but to comply with the forced TPD modules.