The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) has sparked concern after unveiling new subject combination requirements that determine eligibility for recruitment into senior secondary schools, effectively rendering some teaching qualifications non-viable in the job market.
The directive, issued on April 10, outlines 51 approved subject combinations that will now guide training, registration and hiring under the Competency-Based Education (CBE) system.
Only graduates whose academic preparation matches the sanctioned combinations will qualify for registration and subsequent employment in public schools.
The move has immediately raised questions about the fate of thousands of trained teachers whose university programmes fall outside the approved framework, placing them at risk of exclusion from public service despite holding recognised degrees.
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Under the new structure, subject areas have been streamlined into five broad categories; sciences, languages, mathematics, humanities and technical studies. However, only specific combinations within these groups have been cleared for recruitment, leaving a significant number of existing and upcoming graduates uncertain about their employability.
TSC maintains that the standardisation is meant to eliminate inconsistencies in staffing and ensure schools are adequately prepared for the CBE rollout. It also argues that the framework will guide universities in aligning training programmes with labour market demands.
However, the timing of the changes has triggered unease, particularly among graduates already trained under earlier academic structures that are now partially or fully excluded.
By Mercy Kokwon
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