Committee Proposes Intern Teachers Recruitment as Alternative to TSC P&P Positions
In light of the potential financial challenges, Senate’s National Cohesion Committee members proposed an alternative approach to address the shortage of teachers.
They suggested the recruitment of interns who would later be employed on permanent and pensionable terms.
Uasin Gishu Senator Jackson Mandago expressed support for this idea, pointing out that recruiting interns would be a more feasible option than acquiring the entire budget upfront.
“If we are serious about recruiting teachers what stops us not to recruit interns…if you look at 14 billion we might not get the money in one go,” Uasin Gishu Senator Jackson Mandago said.
Tharaka Nithi Senator Mwenda Gataya echoed this sentiment, emphasizing the potential of internships as a way to eventually secure permanent and pensionable positions.
In response to the proposal, Macharia clarified that TSC is already actively recruiting intern teachers.
She also highlighted the Kenya Kwanza government’s commitment to recruiting 116,000 teachers when it came into office.
In January of this year, TSC successfully recruited 36,000 teachers, with 30,550 posts allocated to junior secondary schools, 5,000 posts allocated to primary schools across all counties, and 450 posts allocated to secondary schools.
The Teachers Service Commission in Kenya is facing a substantial shortage of teachers, with the need for over 111,000 additional teachers over the next five years.
“To address the teacher shortage, the commission requires to recruit 111,870 teachers over a period of 5 years,” TSC CEO said.
To address this pressing issue, the commission has requested an annual budgetary allocation of Ksh.14.8 billion.
While concerns have been raised about the availability of funds, committee members have suggested exploring the recruitment of interns as a more financially viable option.
TSC has reassured that they are already recruiting intern teachers and highlighted the government’s commitment to addressing the shortage.
Efforts are underway to bridge the gap and ensure that quality education is provided to students across the country.
Committee Proposes Intern Teachers Recruitment as Alternative to TSC P&P Positions