TSC vs KNUT Debate on Teacher Recruitment: Who’s Right?
Kenya aims to be a successful and competitive country by 2030, with a focus on providing a good quality of life for everyone. Education is key to achieving this goal, and teachers play an important role in the education system. Having well-qualified teachers is essential for creating a strong education system that prepares citizens with the skills needed for various jobs and helps the country grow.
Debate on Teacher Qualifications
There’s a disagreement between the Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) and the Teachers’ Service Commission (TSC) about how to hire teachers. KNUT believes that teachers should be hired based on their highest academic qualifications, even if they didn’t do well in their Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) exams. They argue that this approach would help solve the teacher shortage.
On the other hand, the TSC requires teachers to have at least a C grade in KCSE to qualify for a Diploma teaching position. This raises questions about whether we should prioritize the number of teachers over the quality of education. What should be the minimum requirements for hiring teachers without lowering education standards?
Teaching in Kenya
Teaching is one of the few professions in Kenya that is held accountable for student performance, while other professions, like medicine and engineering, are not judged as harshly for their outcomes. For example, we rarely hear about doctors or engineers being removed from their jobs for poor results, even though mistakes can have serious consequences.
If education is as important as medicine or engineering, shouldn’t there be minimum standards for teachers starting from high school?
TSC vs KNUT
In Finland, which has one of the best education systems, teachers must have at least a bachelor’s degree. While Kenya is not there yet, the TSC is working to improve the standards for entering the teaching profession. KNUT should advocate for systems that ensure a steady flow of qualified teachers from high school onward.
The TSC has set the minimum requirement for Diploma teachers at a C grade. KNUT, along with the Ministry of Education and universities, can work on programs that help students meet this requirement.
Promoting Teaching as a Career
The Ministry of Education can also promote teaching in high schools through internships, mentoring, and scholarships for talented students interested in teaching. This will help ensure that future teachers have the right qualifications from the start.
By focusing on quality rather than just quantity, we can improve how teaching is viewed in Kenya, giving it the respect it deserves. Once teachers are hired, they should receive ongoing training and support to help them grow as educators.
Some of these initiatives are already being implemented by the TSC. KNUT should work with the TSC to regularly check on teachers’ readiness to teach in our changing world.
Even if we hire teachers with advanced degrees, they may not have the skills needed to teach effectively. To move our country forward, we need long-term strategies that improve our education system. Investing in the quality of teachers will lead to better student outcomes and help us achieve our national goals.