By Roy Hezron
Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) has come up with new job descriptions for classroom teachers which will see them being assigned managerial and supervisory roles in school.
Speaking to Education News recently in his office, KUPPET Deputy Secretary General Moses Nthurima said the last 2016/2017 SRC job evaluation took many responsibilities to the school heads hence classroom teachers being left with only two roles of classroom delivery of curriculum and co-curriculum activities.
“When SRC was doing evaluation last time, they took most of the responsibilities of classroom teachers were given to the Principals leaving them with only two job descriptions and when the 54 billion was allocated in the current CBA the teachers lost out,” said Nthurima.
The union has developed elaborate thirty-one (31) new job descriptions which capture the true worth of the classroom teachers and submitted the same to Teachers Service Commission (TSC) so that it can submit to Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) for re-evaluation, so that they can fully be captured in the 2021/2022-2021/2025 remuneration review cycle.
The new job evaluation recognizes classroom teachers’ new responsibilities under the new Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC) and further gives them managerial or supervisory roles.
“Majority of the workforce is in the lower job groups and therefore this CBA propose a re-evaluation of jobs that teachers do to warrant the increase,” adds the proposed 2021-2025 CBA in part.
The new supervisory roles of a classroom teacher, the union came up with include coordinating learning and teaching activities for effective learning, supervise adherence by learners to school rules regulations and routine, supervise leaners’ safety and health during practical learning sessions, supervise school programmes and activities while on duty, and co-ordinate subjects in their areas of specialization.
The new operational responsibilities of the classroom teachers include among others undertaking teaching duties as per the approved curriculum, develop and maintain professional documents, assess leaners’ abilities, skills and learning needs; prepare assessment rubrics and guide leaners’ in the development of portfolios, mentoring and coaching newly recruited teachers, and monitoring leaners achievements through continuous assessment.
“KUPPEt and TSC have developed new Job Descriptions capturing the true worth of a classroom teacher. The new descriptions recognize the teachers’’ leadership and technical work within and outside classroom, which had been ignored by the evaluation tool previously used by SRC,” reads KUPPET statement released immediately after the meeting.
However, the union officials have raised concern over the delayed talks on the new salaries considering that it is only remaining just two months for the current CBA to end, shifting the blame to SRC for not giving advisory for the talks.
“We are seriously concerned by this delay by SRC since expiry of the current CBA on June 30 is fast approaching,” said Akello Misori, KUPPET Secretary General in a statement after the meeting with TSC.
It will however be good news to intern teachers since in the new proposed CBA, KUPPET want the intern teachers be retain for more than six months before permanent employment and be paid a monthly stipend of Sh25, 000.
In addition, the union also wants TSC to provide scholarships to teachers undertaking a Master’s degree in education programs and actively in class, and also the Commission to manage pension for teachers unlike the current set up where retired teachers are frustrated and unable to access their pension.
The union also propose that the government to provide car loans and mortgage to teachers.
