New guidelines note that TSC will increasingly rely on professional in-service training, availability of funds, job experience and minimum qualification’s per grade to guide promotion of teachers.
The guidelines does not mention those who have attained higher academic qualifications, and only notes that a degree will be the minimum qualification for primary school head teachers and their deputies.
Secondary school principals and their assistants will require a master’s degree.
The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) will not consider additional academic qualifications in the promotion of teachers, dealing a blow to thousands who went for further studies in the quest for increased pay.
New guidelines note that TSC will increasingly rely on professional in-service training, availability of funds, job experience and minimum qualification’s per grade to guide promotion of teachers.
The guidelines does not mention those who have attained higher academic qualifications, and only notes that a degree will be the minimum qualification for primary school head teachers and their deputies.
Secondary school principals and their assistants will require a master’s degree.
Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut) has been pushing for the promotion of teachers who have attained higher qualifications since 2014, arguing that more than 30,000 of them are in line promotion after attaining degrees and masters’ grades.
In a circular to TSC county directors and other education officials dated May 2, TSC Chief Executive officer Nancy Macharia said the guidelines are effective November 8, 2017.
“The guidelines effectively replaces the following; scheme of service for non-graduate teachers, scheme of service for graduate teachers and scheme of service for technical teachers and lecturers,” said Mrs Macharia.
The guidelines affects more than 302, 900 teachers in TSC payroll and whose pay stood at Sh180 billion last year or third of the Sh549 billion public sector wage bill.
“Teachers will be required to undertake prescribed professional development programmes to facilitate their career progression as per provisions of regulation 48 of the code of regulations for Teachers,” says the promotion guidelines.
Teachers face the sack for failure to attend six professional development training in their careers that will also determine their promotions.
Each level of the training will take five years and is structure in such a way that, teachers will transit from one level to the next until the sixth level in their teaching careers spanning 25 to 30 years.
The professional development training will also influence how teachers move up the 11 job grades and higher pay that comes with promotions.
A primary school teacher will be required to have KCSE C (Plain) and Primary Teacher Education (PTE) Certificate.
Secondary school teachers will be required to have KCSE C+ (Plus) and a Diploma in Education or degree.
