By Norah Musega
museganorah@gmail.com
The Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) and Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) have reiterated that the delays in commencement of learning in public Junior Secondary Schools (JSSs) is as a result of delayed and inadequate deployment of teachers by the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) and failure to provide enough teaching and learning materials on time by the national government.
KUPPET Secretary General Akelo Misori noted that the level of preparedness in private schools has surpassed that of its public counterparts.
While speaking to Education News on phone, he noted that JSS needs well equipped computer and science laboratories to facilitate the practical part of the curriculum.
“I think the Kenyan government wasn’t prepared by all standards to implement CBC in our schools because they ought to have prepared necessary materials needed by Grade 7 learners,” said Misori.
Misori said that majority of teachers in primary school have limited capacity to handle science subjects which entails a lot of practical teaching thus suggested that the schools should seek assistance from teachers in neighbouring secondary schools.
He however noted that the use of the teachers will require proper coordination between secondary school principals and primary school head teachers especially in harmonizing timetables.
KNUT Secretary General Collins Oyuu boss called on TSC to stop imposing unnecessary terms regarding deployment of teachers willing to teach JSS.
“Several teachers in primary school are well trained and have the capacity to train learners in JSS as most of them are graduates of higher diploma and degree,” said Oyuu.
Meanwhile, Migori KUPPET chairman Henry Otunga has called on TSC to promptly deploy enough teachers to attend to the pioneer JSS students.
He noted the government ought to have consulted with teachers unions in the deployment of JSS teachers as it would have helped avoid most of the challenges being experienced currently.
“It saddens me that TSC has not yet deployed teachers to most of the schools across the country. Uriri sub-county has 81 junior secondary schools but so far only 80 teachers have been deployed,” said Otunga.
A spot check by Education News on public JSSs in Migori County confirmed that learning had not commenced in most of the schools due to insufficient teachers with some learners having been taught only three subjects, three weeks since reporting to school.
