Secondary schools teachers will undergo urgent in-service training on the Competency-Based Education (CBE) curriculum before the rollout of Grade 10 senior secondary in January 2026.
This directive comes as approximately 1.2 million learners currently in junior school are expected to transition to senior school next year.
Dr. Beatrice Inyangala, Principal Secretary for Higher Education, has instructed all public universities to immediately begin in-service teacher education programs.
This urgent call stems from the current lack of competencies among the 154,200 secondary school teachers in the three senior school career pathways: Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM); Social Sciences; and Arts and Sports.
Speaking at a conference for chairpersons of public universities in Mombasa, Dr Inyangala emphasized the critical need for this training.
“You realize that our students will be transitioning to senior school in January. The teachers who are going to teach them are our own products… these teachers do not have competencies in the three pathways. We have a very urgent assignment beginning in July to start developing those levels so that we can actualise in-service training for the teachers who will be teaching in senior schools,” she stated.
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She further stressed that equipping teachers to deliver CBE effectively should be a standing item on every university council meeting agenda, reiterating, “It is very urgent.”
Julius Melly, Chairperson of the Education Committee in the National Assembly, assured the public that the retooling of senior school teachers is already in progress. He confirmed that the government has allocated Ksh600 million for the training and retooling of teachers nationwide, specifically for CBE implementation and the transition to senior school. This allocation falls under the budget of the Teachers Service Commission (TSC).
Melly allayed any concerns about the timeline, stating,
“We have time. Retooling and capacity building are integral aspects of teaching. Teachers regularly undergo various trainings on new skills, new methodologies, and new approaches to teaching their subjects. Teaching and learning are part of the everyday life of a teacher, so this is not a new concept.”
Currently, Grade 9 learners are in the process of selecting their preferred career pathways and subjects for senior school. Last week, the Ministry of Education launched a month-long sensitization exercise for education stakeholders to guide these learners in their choices.
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Prof. Julius Bitok, Principal Secretary for Basic Education, urged parents and guardians to actively assist their children in selecting appropriate pathways and subjects. Speaking in Turbo, Uasin Gishu County, during the commissioning of a new multipurpose hall at ACK Kaplelach High School, Prof. Bitok described the pathway and subject selection system as straightforward.
The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) has already made significant strides in teacher retooling. To date, more than 7,000 school principals have undergone training. Since the introduction of CBE seven years ago, the TSC reports that 229,292 primary school teachers and 75,000 junior school teachers have been retooled.
In April, chief principals of national schools convened in Mombasa, where they advocated for an accelerated retooling of teachers on CBE, highlighting the critical nature of this ongoing initiative.
By Cornelius Korir
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