In September, the TSC will send at least 1,000 P1 instructors to secondary schools.
Principals of secondary schools have submitted subject combinations.
Despite Parliament’s support for TSC to employ teachers with a mean grade C (simple) and secondary degree, the Commission has remained steadfast.
MPs demanded TSC to promote and deploy teachers with KCSE mean grade C (plain) or less and Diplomas, Postgraduate Diplomas, and Degrees from authorized universities.
Only PTE teachers who earned C+(plus) on the KCSE will be considered for promotion after July.
TSC ceased automatically promoting teachers with advanced degrees, although it still deploys 1,000 P1 instructors annually.
TSC CEO Dr. Nancy Macharia stated they suspended automatic teacher promotions in 2014 because it was unsustainable.
Macharia said the surge in teachers with advanced degrees rendered automatic promotions unsustainable, thus the Commission banned them on January 9, 2014.
Dr. Macharia said the policy was untenable because so many teachers had advanced degrees.
In 2020, there were 218,077 public primary school teachers, according to the Commission.
21,632 instructors (9,821 men and 11,811 women) had Diplomas, while 17,930 had Bachelor’s degrees.
491 professors (197 men, 294 women) had master’s or doctoral degrees; the rest had certificates.
2020 has 113,155 post-primary teachers. 909 male and 816 female teachers held Masters and PhDs (PhD).
Previously, primary school teachers with higher degrees were promoted to Job Groups J and K.
TSC has set the threshold for secondary school instructors, including junior high.
TSC says teachers who didn’t get a C+ in the KCSE won’t teach in secondary schools, even if they have a degree in secondary choice.
Primary school teachers who went to college for a secondary degree had a C (simple) average in KCSE.
Deputy Director of Staffing Antonia Lentoijoni said the qualifications requirements will boost standards.
She said the Commission upped the bar to improve education quality due to new societal problems.
“The Teachers Service Commission has elevated the entry point of teaching in the country,” Lentoijoni remarked.
The decision prevents teachers who scored C- or C and have degrees from teaching in secondary school, despite a suggestion by Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut) Secretary-General Collins Oyuu that primary school teachers be allowed to teach Grade 7 and 8 in junior secondary school because several have masters degrees.
In the last three years, 3,000 P1 graduates were promoted to secondary schools.
TSC announced 1,000 deployment positions in 2019 and 2020. Last year, the Commission advertised 1,000 extra slots.
The Commission assigned art and science teachers to secondary schools.
TSC stated teacher deployment will be based on available teaching vacancies, despite complaints from certain teachers.
A deployed teacher in job category C2 will earn shs 34,955 minimum and shs 43,694 maximum in July 2021.
The instructor receives a yearly commuting allowance of shs 5,000, a home allowance of shs 7,500, and a leave allowance of shs 6,000. Hardship areas receive shs 10,900.
TSC outlined the prerequisites for promotion to secondary school:
I Be Kenyan;
ii) A P1 Certificate;
iii) Have a Bachelor’s in Education with 2 teaching subjects;
iv) Must have a C+ (Plus) average on the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) or its equivalent, and a C+ (Plus) in both teaching disciplines;
v) Must work for TSC.
