TSC Boss Finally Remarks on the Contentious Teacher Professional Development, TPD Refresher Modules
The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) has directed teachers to step up their game in order to meet the requirements of the Competence-Based Curriculum (CBC).
TSC CEO Nancy Macharia stated that with the change in curriculum, the role of teachers has fundamentally changed because it should be guided by the needs of the learners and the curriculum.
Teachers, she claims, must use differentiated modes of instruction and assessment in order for students to benefit individually and progress meaningfully.
“For teachers to meet the needs of the 21st-century learners; they should possess additional skills that include; a learner-centred classroom, students as learners, users, and producers of digital content and project-based learning,” Macharia said.
She stated that these are the skills that CBC expects of teachers and that they must therefore improve their pedagogical skills and content knowledge.
Macharia pointed out that TSC has no other teachers, implying that the in-service teachers must step up their game.
She stated that by April 2022, the commission will be training secondary teachers on CBC. “I urge you to become acquainted with the CBC because the first cohort will begin junior secondary in 2023,” she said.
According to Macharia, the commission planned to address the performance gaps identified through teachers’ performance appraisal and development (TPAD) and performance contracts through teachers’ professional development (TPD) programs.
Furthermore, she stated that TPD would raise the professional standards of Kenyan teachers while keeping them up to date on emerging trends in the education sector.
However, Macharia lamented that the executions of these programs have been hampered by litigation, causing their implementation to be delayed.
“At times one is left to wonder how else the commission would have undertaken its functions if even when all procedures and legal requirements have been followed, issues end up in courts,” she said.
According to Macharia, universities and other institutions of higher learning should be equipped with what the CBC requires of them.
She explained that the change was necessitated by the need for such institutions of higher learning to understand what was expected of them as they admitted students.
Macharia told heads of national secondary schools at a Kisumu hotel today that CBC necessitates a lot of creativity from teachers, students, and even parents.
Macharia noted that CBC is a recognized mode both regionally and internationally. She urged teachers to take Teacher Professional Development (TPD) seriously because it helps them grow professionally.
According to Macharia, the mode is now the way to go because it increases teachers’ capacity.
She revealed that the African Union supports the module and that it is now required there.
According to the CEO, teachers must adapt to changing trends in digital technology.
“That has been demonstrated with the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic where people had to work digitally from home,” she said.
Macharia urged teachers to engage students and parents on a regular basis in order to avoid incidents of unrest.
She praised the country’s more than 300,000 teachers for their dedication in the face of adversity.
The CEO assured that teachers who deserve to be promoted will be considered because the organization cares about their well-being.
“I must say now that the TSC is one of the best employers in this part of the country,” she said.
Macharia also advocated for students’ and teachers’ ongoing guidance and counselling in schools.
She warned the principals to brace themselves for hard times ahead as schools reopens and the new school year begin, particularly for junior secondary students.
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