TSC begins updating and deploying P1 teachers.
To address the critical teacher shortage in Junior Secondary Schools (JSS), the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) has been advised to utilize primary school teachers (P1 teachers) by retraining and deploying them to teach Grades 7, 8, and 9.
Call for Policy Adjustment on P1 Teacher Deployment
Legislators and officials from the Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) have urged TSC to reconsider its strict academic qualifications for deploying P1 teachers. Currently, the Commission requires candidates to have:
- A Bachelor’s Degree in Secondary Education
- A KCSE Mean Grade of C+
- A minimum C+ in two teaching subjects
However, due to the severe staffing crisis, stakeholders recommend that TSC prioritize retooling Primary Teacher Education (PTE) teachers instead of enforcing strict academic qualifications. This will enable them to effectively teach subjects such as Music, Art and Craft, and Physical Education, which many JSS teachers struggle to handle.
Teacher Shortage in JSS
According to TSC CEO Dr. Nancy Macharia, the Commission requires 149,350 teachers for Grades 7 to 9. However, only 76,928 teachers have been recruited so far—just 51.5% of the required workforce. The breakdown of JSS teachers includes:
- 39,550 teachers initially recruited on internship terms and later confirmed
- 8,378 P1 teachers deployed to JSS in 2023 and 2024
- 9,000 teachers hired on permanent and pensionable (PNP) terms
- 20,000 intern teachers recruited in 2024, funded by a Kshs. 4.8 billion allocation
TSC’s Ongoing Retooling Efforts
Since April 2019, TSC has retooled 229,292 teachers on the Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC) and Competency-Based Assessment (CBA). From May 2023 to November 2024, 60,642 JSS teachers underwent retooling to enhance their ability to deliver CBC effectively.
Continuous Deployment of P1 Teachers
The deployment of P1 teachers has been ongoing since 2019 as a promotion strategy following complaints about stagnation in career progression. Between 2019 and 2021, 1,000 P1 teachers were deployed annually to secondary schools. However, with the rollout of JSS, the numbers increased significantly, with 8,378 teachers deployed between 2022 and 2024.
Pressure on TSC to Solve the JSS Teacher Crisis
Currently, the teacher-to-classroom ratio in JSS stands at 1:1, highlighting the urgent need for more instructors. To address this, TSC plans to deploy an additional 6,000 PTE teachers in April 2025.
Stakeholders continue to push for policy adjustments to ensure qualified but underutilized primary school teachers are given opportunities to serve in JSS and help mitigate the staffing shortage.
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