Matiang’i calls for even distribution of teachers, says there is no shortage
What you need to know:
- The government plans to hire 5,000 more teachers in July after the National Treasury allocated Sh4.5 billion for recruitment and promotions.
- Dr Matiang’i also complained about teacher absenteeism and lack of learning materials in schools, saying they are affecting the quality of education.
- The Cabinet secretary warned that it would not be business as usual with unions and associations that support teachers who fail to report for duty.
Education Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i has urged the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) to evenly distribute teachers in public schools in the country.
Dr Matiang’i said the country has no shortage of teachers but instead it is the poor distribution that has created the crisis.
“We have enough teachers. The problem lies with deployment and posting of teachers. Teachers want to teach in specific areas,” said the Cabinet secretary on Friday during the launch of National Education Sector at the Kenya Institute of curriculum Development.
He went on: “We have to be serious about this issue if we hope to achieve quality education.”
However, teachers unions have been pushing the TSC to recruit more teachers, putting the shortage at 80,000.
But the Kenya Economic Survey released this week indicates that the country has enough teachers for the more than 12.7 million students in public schools across the country.
It notes that the pupil-to-teacher ratio in public primary schools stood at 41:1 last year, compared with 43:1 in 2014, while in public secondary schools it was 27:1. The figures are close to the global average of 35:1 for both levels.
The government plans to hire 5,000 more teachers in July after the National Treasury allocated Sh4.5 billion for recruitment and promotions.
Dr Matiang’i also complained about teacher absenteeism and lack of learning materials in schools, saying they are affecting the quality of education.
“For the last five months that I have been at the ministry, [at] every school that I have visited, at least one or two teachers were absent yet children are supposed to be learning,” he lamented.
He warned that it would not be business as usual with unions and associations that support teachers who fail to report for duty.
He also asked the TSC to be tough on teachers who fail to report to work.
“TSC should be part of the solution and not [part of the] problem. The same applies to unions,” said Dr Matiang’i.
On the controversial issue of procuring textbooks for schools, Dr Matiang’i said the task would not be taken over by the government but insisted that a new criteria must be agreed upon.
“We do not want to introduce a programme similar to school equipment or centralize but we have to agree on a formula that will address the current wastage,” said Dr Matiang’i.
