Ministry Of education to bear TPD Cost – Review.
The national government has reconsidered its decision to impose a mandatory fee for teachers undergoing specialized training.
The employer implemented Teacher Professional Development (TPD) training in October 2021, requiring teachers to pay Ksh6,000 annually for each of the six modules they are required to cover. Teachers were expected to pay a total of Ksh180,000 for the entire period.
However, teachers who were required to pay Sh6,000 each for professional development may no longer be required to do so if the ongoing budget review is approved.
The Ministry of Education will bear the cost.
Florence Mutua, chair of the National Assembly’s education committee, stated that the funds will be included in the ministry’s general capitation.
Mutua stated during a committee on budget estimates that the burden will soon be lifted from teachers.
“As a committee we agreed that we will factor Teacher Professional Development in the ministry’s budget and the process is ongoing,” Mutua said.
Teachers Service Commission has developed one TPD module so far; the remaining modules will be completed in the second half of the year.
If this is approved, teachers will no longer have these funds deducted to cover course expenses.
The decision was reached while the committee was reviewing the amount of money to be budgeted for the Ministry of Education and the Teachers Service Commission (TSC).
In September 2021, the Kenya Union of Post Primary Teachers (KUPPET) petitioned Parliament to overturn TSC’s directive, claiming that charging teachers the Ksh6,000 training fee was unreasonable.
Ministry Of education to bear TPD Cost – Review
The commission had hoped to train 5,000 teachers, but 20,000 more signed up for the program.
Teachers are required to complete an upskill module every five years under the new program, which began in December 2021. The training, which is aimed at over 5000 teachers, will take place during the school holidays, failing which they risk losing their teaching licenses.
The course is currently only available at Riara University, Mt Kenya University, the Kenya Education Management Institute, and Kenyatta University. After passing the technicality tests, the chosen few were chosen.
This unique training method was first introduced in 2018. It did not take off, however, after the Kenya National Union of Teachers filed a lawsuit demanding that TSC pay for the training.
TSC finance manager Cheptumo Ayabei stated that the commission had taken this into account when submitting the commission’s estimates.
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“This is something we thought should be met just like other teachers’ provisions,” he said.
TSC CEO Nancy Macharia previously stated that the program is a stand-alone project that requires a separate budget to be factored in.
Ministry Of education to bear TPD Cost – Review
