- KUNOPPET has moved to the High Court to challenge the Ministry of Education’s circular integrating the DECTE and DPTE teacher training programmes.
- The petition has raised questions over whether the Teachers Service Commission should have been involved and whether public participation requirements were met.
- The Ministry has defended the reforms, citing nationwide consultations conducted by the Presidential Working Party on Education Reform across all 47 counties
The High Court is set to determine the future of teacher education in Kenya after the Kenya Union of Pre-Primary Education Teachers (KUNOPPET) moved to challenge the government’s proposed integration of the Diploma in Early Childhood Teacher Education (DECTE) and the Diploma in Primary Teacher Education (DPTE), in a case that could reshape how education reforms are developed and implemented in the country.
The dispute is before the court in Constitutional Petition No. E079 of 2026, where KUNOPPET is challenging a Ministry of Education circular issued on January 19, 2026, that set the integration in motion as part of broader efforts to strengthen teacher preparation under the Competency-Based Education (CBE) system.
At the heart of the petition is the question of whether the Ministry of Education has the constitutional authority to redesign teacher education programmes without the direct involvement of the Teachers Service Commission (TSC). The court has also been asked to determine whether TSC should have played a greater role in the reforms and whether the constitutional requirement for public participation was fully observed before the circular was issued.
ALSO READ:
Government to replace varsity scholarships with loans under new proposal
The central arguments
KUNOPPET argues that TSC bears a constitutional responsibility to maintain standards within the teaching profession, and that because teacher training determines the qualifications of future teachers, the Commission should have been actively involved before the reforms were introduced. The union maintains that teacher education is closely linked to teacher regulation, making collaboration between the Ministry and TSC essential whenever major changes of this nature are proposed.
The Ministry of Education and the Attorney General have taken a different position, arguing that the Constitution assigns distinct responsibilities to different institutions. While TSC manages the teaching service through registration, recruitment, deployment, promotion and discipline of teachers, the Ministry is responsible for developing national education policies and overseeing teacher education programmes. The government maintains that aligning DECTE and DPTE falls squarely within its policy-making role and does not interfere with TSC’s constitutional mandate, adding that the reforms do not touch on teacher employment or professional regulation since the Ministry does not recruit, promote, transfer or discipline teachers.
According to the Ministry, the proposed alignment is intended to strengthen teacher preparation and improve learning outcomes by creating a smoother transition between early childhood education and primary education, while ensuring teachers are equipped with the skills needed to effectively implement the Competency-Based Education system. The government further submits that education policy requires technical expertise and long-term planning, and argues that courts should generally allow specialised institutions to implement policy unless there is clear evidence of constitutional or legal violations.
ALSO READ: Moi University workers reject court-awarded compensation, head to appeal over redundancy dispute
ECDE teachers raise concerns
Despite these assurances, many early childhood education teachers remain concerned about the proposed changes. Early childhood education is widely recognised as a specialised field focused on the unique developmental needs of young children, with teachers at this level receiving specialised training in child development, play-based learning, language acquisition, foundational literacy and numeracy, as well as social and emotional development.
Those opposing the integration argue that combining ECDE and primary teacher education could weaken this specialised training and reduce the distinct professional identity of early childhood educators, stressing that their concern is not necessarily opposition to reform but a desire to ensure that any changes preserve the quality and uniqueness of early childhood education.
Public participation and what’s at stake
A separate but closely linked issue before the court is whether the reforms met the constitutional requirement for public participation. KUNOPPET argues that teachers and other affected stakeholders were not meaningfully consulted before the Ministry issued the circular. The government disputes this claim, pointing to the work of the Presidential Working Party on Education Reform, which it says conducted nationwide consultations in all 47 counties, received memoranda from individuals and institutions, and engaged teachers, education experts, parents, learners, faith-based organisations and other stakeholders before making its recommendations.
The government further argues that public participation does not require unanimous agreement with the final decision, but rather requires that stakeholders are given a genuine opportunity to present their views during the policy-making process. The High Court will now determine whether the consultation process met the constitutional standard.
The outcome of the case carries significant implications for Kenya’s education sector. Should the government succeed, the judgment could affirm the Ministry of Education’s authority to restructure teacher education programmes through national policy initiatives. Should the petition succeed instead, future reforms may require greater collaboration with TSC and more extensive consultation with teachers and professional organisations before implementation. The decision is also expected to clarify how constitutional institutions should work together when their mandates overlap.
Why public speaking remains one of the most valuable skills for personal and professional success
Beyond the immediate dispute over DECTE and DPTE integration, the case represents a constitutional test of how Kenya should implement education reforms while respecting institutional mandates, professional standards and democratic principles. The Ministry maintains that the reforms will modernise teacher preparation and strengthen the education system, while the petitioners insist that reforms affecting the teaching profession must fully respect constitutional procedures and protect the specialised nature of early childhood education. Whatever the outcome, the High Court’s judgment is expected to become an important reference point in Kenya’s ongoing efforts to build an education system that is both innovative and firmly grounded in the Constitution.
By Hillary Muhalya
You can also follow our social media pages on Twitter: Education News KE and Facebook: Education News Newspaper for timely updates.
>>> Click here to stay up-to-date with trending regional stories
>>> Click here to read more informed opinions on the country’s education landscape
