Knut wants reimbursement for JSS teachers

Since the freshly hired teachers are insufficient, the Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut) will demand remuneration for primary school teachers who have been helping to teach in junior secondary schools (JSS).

Collins Oyuu, the secretary-general of Knut, told The Nation yesterday that the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) ought to pay thousands of their members who are certified to teach in JSS and who have already been assigned lessons.

“We cannot watch while students suffer. Although TSC is trying, we must assist them. Teachers in JSS are qualified to do so, but as is customary in the workforce, more remuneration should be given for more work, he said.

Although TSC employed and sent 10,000 instructors and 20,000 interns to JSS in February, just one or two teachers were sent to the majority of the 23,000 public schools.

Johnson Nzioka, chairperson of the Kenya Primary Schools Heads Association (Kepsha), stated that despite staffing issues, learning continues at JSS.

“The majority of the books have now been delivered, and we have hired the qualified teachers. But, we haven’t received the capitation monies we were promised.

“During first term, the primary school students were given 20% instead of the 50% allocation. We don’t have enough money to fund running schools or to purchase instructional materials, he stated.

Mr Oyuu disclosed that Knut has formed a sub-group under its steering committee to deal with JSS concerns and that on Thursday, they will meet with Kepsha officials to examine the “actual situation on the ground”.

Peter Sitienei, the chair of the Kenya Union of Special Needs Education Teachers, asked the TSC to give priority to the deployment of JSS teachers who are trained in special needs education (SNE).

“The cost of living has increased even though we haven’t received the funding for SNE,” he continued. Some principals have contacted and asked me for an early school dismissal. When allocating finances to schools, special needs children should be given top attention because they are vulnerable.

While students with less severe disabilities are incorporated into the regular schools, the majority of SNE schools are residential schools. Those enrolled in SNE receive an additional Sh9,000 on top of the annual capitation primary school students receive of Sh1,420.

To increase enrollment, the TSC published an advertisement seeking qualified teachers who are interested in applying for deployment to JSS. The application deadline is today. Mr. Oyuu criticized the commission’s guidelines, claiming that they would exclude many eligible cases.

A teacher must have received at least a C+ in both of their teaching subjects and a mean grade of C+ on the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education or its equivalent to be eligible.

The most recent degree a teacher has should be used as the criterion rather than grades from secondary schools. It should also take a teacher’s prior teaching experience into account. There are teachers who had a C-plain on the KCSE yet went on to excel in their undergraduate work. They shouldn’t be condemned based on their C plain, Mr. Oyuu remarked.

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