We’ll lose our independence, TSC rejects education reform proposals
The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) has rejected several proposals by the Presidential Working Party on Education Reforms (PWPER).
According to the Commission, the PWPER failed to consider the input of the Commission on critical matters involving the teaching service.
TSC CEO Nancy Macharia said the recommendations if implemented, will limit and interfere with the Commission’s constitutional mandate to an extent the Commission will lose its independence.
“The proposals of the working party, negate the threshold for a constitutional amendment and by implication, the party proposes to take away key mandate and functions of the Commission, underpinned by the constitution, through amendment of the statute law,” Macharia said.
Macharia was addressing members of the Parliamentary Departmental Committee on Education during a retreat in Mombasa.
The Working Party had recommended the Ministry of Education develop guidelines on how all teachers who graduated before 2023 will undergo a mandatory one-year retooling and upgrading program for compliance with the curriculum change.
However, Macharia said the proposal had been erroneously given to the Ministry without reference to the Commission’s retooling.
She said the recommendation might restrict employment opportunities for teachers and alter the registration requirements as set out in the Code of Regulation for Teachers (CORT).
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“The Commission cannot discriminate against the teachers who have not upgraded for compliance during registration and employment,” Macharia said.
“Article 237 (3) (a) of the Constitution mandates TSC to “review the standards of education and training of persons entering the teaching service.”
She insisted that TSC should continue spearheading the retooling of teachers in service as is currently established.
“The Commission should continue employing teachers during the transition period. In-service teachers are already employed and managed by TSC. It is thus desirable that any post-teacher training, capacity building initiatives be coordinated by the Commission as per the Employment Act,” she said.
So far, the Commission has retooled 229,292 primary school teachers, 55,125 secondary school teachers, and 49,540 Junior Secondary School teachers.
The Commission also rejected the proposal to allow the Ministry to review entry grades for preservice teaching programs.
Macharia said transferring the responsibility to set entry standards of teaching service to the Ministry and any other entity will amount to the usurpation of the constitutional mandate of the Commission.
She argued that the recommended entry grades by the Working Party are not harmonized with the existing registration requirements under the TSC framework and the subject cluster approach will cease to exist.
“The Commission has a role in setting entry requirements which is its mandate as an adviser to the national government. For teachers to effectively deliver instruction, they must have numeracy and literacy competencies,” Macharia said.
“The proposal will standardize entry requirement for all Diploma teachers.”
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She proposed that the Commission should urgently review the existing qualification framework and entry requirements and align the same to the CBC Curriculum.
Macharia also dismissed the proposal that the Ministry should establish a comprehensive school system where all levels of learning are managed as one institution (PP1 — Grade nine).
She said the expansion of the mandate of the Commission to cover the management of Pre-primary education is a preserve of the County Government under Part 2 (9) of the Fourth Schedule of the Constitution.
She added that it will also increase the number of institutional administrators.
“The proposal is agreeable, given TSC’s institutional capacity, but requires that a County Government expressly requests to transfer management of its Pre-primary teachers to TSC,” Macharia said.
She urged the Parliament to develop an enabling legal framework for the creation of comprehensive schools since pre-primary school is a mandate of the County Government.
“The legal framework will provide for either transfer of functions from a County Government to the National Government or Constitutional amendments,” she said.
She noted that the Commission has the institutional capacity to manage the Pre-primary school level.
We’ll lose our independence, TSC rejects education reform proposals