County Education Boards should restrict registration of new schools to deal with teacher shortage, the Teachers’ Service Commission has said.
Chairperson Lydia Nzomo said mushrooming of new schools poses a big challenge to the commission.
“The more schools we set up every year, the more we continue to face teacher shortage because the 5,000 teachers we employ are still not enough,” she said.
Nzomo spoke in Machakos on Wednesday during the first open day forum for school heads from the Nairobi Metropolitan.
She added that the commission plans to promote 10,000 teachers who have stagnated in Job groups L and M.
“When these posts are advertised please apply because in some instances we have seen teachers complain of not being promoted yet they never apply for the promotions,” Nzomo said.
She added that the commission wants to improve teaching services in public schools.
“Our new vision statement is to be a transformative teaching service for quality education. This envisages a reformed teaching service that will deliver the relevant tool development goal,” Nzomo said.
Teachers’ unions Knut and Kuppet welcomed the new reforms by the commission, but called for proper consultation.
“We recognise the changes that are coming, but we need to work as a team so that we all get to know how we are going to cover the rest of the journey,” Machakos Kuppet secretary Musembi Katuku said.
He praised the commission for organising the open day forum.
