Kenya grapples with 114,581-teacher shortage, says TSC

The Teachers Service Commission has Monday confirmed that there is a shortage of 114,581 teachers in primary and post-primary institutions in Kenya.

Speaking at the release of the 2021 Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) examinations, TSC CEO Nancy Macharia attributed the shortage to increased enrolment arising from the increasing number of school-age children, the 100 per cent transition policy, registration of new schools and natural attrition factors.

Macharia at the same time thanked the Government for finding resources to allow the commission to recruit an average of 5,000 teachers annually for public schools.

In addition, the TSC CEO noted that the Commission would in time task their field officers to conduct a routine exercise of assessing their sub-counties to ensure that all schools have balanced teacher to learner ratios ahead of the start of the new academic calendar.

This exercise will conclude by May 9, 2022.

Meanwhile, the total number of teachers trained in CBC in the last 3 years is 229,292.

According to Macharia, TSC has planned on training 60,000 junior secondary school teachers in CBC and Competency-Based Assessment (CBA) with effect from 25th April (immediately after completion of marking of KCSE) to 13th May 2022.

“The training will adopt a phased (cascade) model of training that will start at the national level to the county and sub county levels,” she said.

During the period, the teachers will be trained in specific learning areas in languages, pure sciences, applied sciences, mathematics, humanities and technical subjects.