Teachers will continue to shoulder the burden of paying Sh6,000 for refresher courses as directed by the Teachers Service Commission.
The budget committee of the National Assembly, led by Kanini Kega, revealed that there was no budget allocation for the program.
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“There is no budget provision to cater to training teachers under Teacher Professional Development despite the House having approved a report that recommended the government takes up the cost,” the report reads.
This, even as the National Assembly education committee led by Florence Mutua approved the inclusion in the budget.
“This means teachers will continue to be burdened by the costs associated with this training,” the report reads.
Teachers Service Commission developed one TPD module; the remaining will be achieved in the second half of the year.
The commission targeted to train 5,000 teachers, however, 20,000 more enrolled on the program.
While submitting the commissions’ estimates, TSC finance manager Cheptumo Ayabei said the commission had put that into consideration.
“This is something we thought should be met just like other teachers’ provisions,” he said.
Previously, TSC boss Nancy Macharia said the program is a stand-alone project that needs a separate budget to be factored in.
Every five years, TPD aims at to assisting instructors in renewing their professional certificates.
Teachers will now be obliged to complete five years of in-service professional training and have their certifications renewed.
The professional development program will last 30 years and will be divided into six modules, each lasting five years.
MPs also questioned the TSC internship policy, which stipulates that a trained teacher must be under the age of 35 in order to be hired as an intern.
“This has disadvantaged teachers who are above this age since priority is given to those teachers who have gone through an internship,” the report reads.
They said that the policy has affected teachers over the required age who are looking for permanent teaching positions.
