This is why I was voted iTOYA Champion-Karuri teacher

By Ndichu Kamau

Karuri High School produced 2018 Innovative Teacher of the Year (iTOYA) champion.
Maxwell Vincent Kayesi was declared the iTOYA winner during the Kenya Secondary School Heads Association (KESSHA) annual conference held in Mombasa.
The Physics, Mathematics and Physical Education teacher was accorded a hero’s welcome for raising the school’s flag high nation-wide.
Kayesi floored other seven contestants drawn from seven regions to clinch the top position.
The Sub-County and a mixed day school in Kiambaa is sponsored by Anglican Church of Kenya, Diocese of Mt. Kenya South. It has a population of 1,000 students.
According to Principal Patrick Mathu, Kayesi’s achievement is now a propeller of better academic standards.
His approach to teaching is not only academically but also seeks to instill a lifelong impact that students can apply in day-to-day lives.
Kayesi has mastered a way making sure his students are interested in the subjects he teaches. His skills and passion were honed at the Kenya Science Teachers College.
While growing up, Kayesi who is the Dean of Studies, aspired to take a career in the aviation industry and had enrolled at the Kenya School of Flying. But as fate would have it, his parents could not afford the Sh4 million fees required to undertake the course and acquire a Private Piloting Licence (PPL).
Kayesi then had to take his other option and enrolled at the Kenya Science Teachers’ College. His is now flying higher in his teaching career.
Upon graduation Kayesi did his teaching practice at Alliance High School and was retained by the Board of Management (BoM). He later taught briefly at Muslim Gilrls in Nairobi before being employed by the Teachers’ Service Commission and posted to the present school in July 2007.
His dedication has seen him assigned various roles at the school. He is credited with designing an exam policy which stipulated how exams were set, marking timelines and analysis as a Head of Exams. He enabled the school acquire an Examination Analysis System with a database of students’ performance records.
“I use ICT to enhance learning and make it learner oriented using concepts within the environment,” he says.
For instance, to address absenteeism by students the teacher has developed a Youtube channel where he uploads lessons for self learning by students. This ensures the absentees are at par with their colleagues.
He has also partnered with colleagues within the sub-county to design a Kiambu County TSC application. The App dubbed KKR (Kiambu, Kiambaa, Ruiru) has a Principal as the administrator. Teachers upload lesson plans and video recording during teaching.
Mathu says the school has an enabling environment for learners and committed teachers. There are 48 teachers at the school.
The teacher has a Bachelor of Science degree in Information Technology from Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT).