The National Assembly budget committee has disclosed that teachers will continue to incur the cost of paying Sh6,000 for the refresher courses fronted by the Teachers Service Commission (TSC).
The committee led by Kanini Kega highlighted that there was no budget allocation for the same.
“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 take up the cost,” the report reads.
This was despite the fact that the education committee of the National Assembly, led by Florence Mutua, had approved the inclusion in the budget.
“This means teachers will continue to be burdened by the costs associated with this training,” the report reads.
One TPD module was produced by the Teachers Service Commission; the rest modules will be completed in the second half of the year.
The commission intended to train 5,000 teachers, but the initiative drew 20,000 more participants.
TSC financial manager Cheptumo Ayabei said the commission had taken that into account when submitting the commissions’ estimates.
“This is something we thought should be met just like other teachers’ provisions,” he said.
TSC CEO Nancy Macharia initially stated that the program is a stand-alone operation that requires its own budget.
Every five years, TPD aims to assist instructors in renewing their professional credentials.
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 appointed 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 claimed that the regulation has harmed teachers over the required age who are looking for long-term teaching positions.