CS Machogu Addresses JSS Teachers Shortage As Concern Is Raised By Headteachers
CS Machogu Addresses JSS Teachers Shortage As Concern Is Raised By Headteachers. Headteachers of junior secondary schools have expressed worry over the delay in the deployment of teachers for Grade Seven, and Ezekiel Machogu, the cabinet secretary for education, has responded.
Education CS Machogu gave a press conference in Nairobi on Monday, February 6, assuring all public schools that the government has hired enough teachers who were about to report to their respective schools.
Machogu claims that 36,000 of the teachers they have hired will be reporting to their respective classrooms this week or at the latest by the following week. The leaders of the Junior Secondary Schools (JSS), where the instructor was placed, countered that the number did not correspond to the workload required by the Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC).
Additionally, teachers expressed concerns regarding the Grade 7 class’s access to textbooks, saying that majority of the texts were not approved by the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD).
The Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) demanded that the government dispatch teachers immediately so that instruction could begin in junior secondary schools on February 2.
KNUT claims that in order to prevent more class time loss, they applied pressure to the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) to deploy the teachers as soon as possible.
Wilson Sossion, a former KNUT secretary general, has been urging the Ministry of Education to scrap the curriculum because he claims it will harm the lives of millions of students in Kenya and disadvantages youngsters.
“This system is unworkable. It is past time for the ministry to acknowledge this and start looking for a different paradigm. We might not return to the 8-4-4 system, but STEM is an option, he said.
Some private schools have been offering education. Kenya Private Schools Association (KPSA) Chair Charles did hint that there were difficulties, though.
As Grade 7 students went to public schools, private schools lamented the low enrollment. Information on primary school instructors who are certified to teach in junior secondary schools was requested by the TSC earlier.
According to TSC, starting in Grade 7 later this month, only classroom teachers will be appointed to teach in the junior secondary sector. The TSC is coming up with a plan to evaluate all primary school teachers who have degrees and diplomas in secondary options before placing them in Grade 7 classes.