TSC Cuts JSS Contracts, a Blow to Primary School Teachers
TSC Cuts JSS Contracts, a Blow to Primary School Teachers. The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) has terminated the contracts of primary school principals who were appointed to serve as Principals of Junior Secondary Schools (JSS), and their contracts will not be renewed.
JSS issued deployment letters to the heads earlier this year to mark the start of their one-year contract, which runs through December 30, 2023.
However, following the presentation of the Presidential Working Party on Education Reforms (PWPER) report at the State House last week by President William Ruto, new changes have been made.
The recommendations, which will be implemented in a year, will merge the nursery, primary school, and junior high school into a single institution.
The Comprehensive School will be the single organization that incorporates all three levels and will be overseen by a principal.
The teachers in charge of the nursery, primary, and junior schools will serve as deputy principals to the principal.
The principal and his deputies must be educated professionals with a bachelor’s degree or above.
Currently, the majority of primary school principals are P1 teachers without a degree, with a few holding diplomas
TSC did not examine the headteacher’s credentials when promoting them; instead, they were given a letter of deployment to JSS if they had a student in Grade 7 registered at the school.
The interim leadership of the headteachers over the JSS expires on December 30, 2023, according to existing legislation.
Kenya has over 23,000 public elementary schools, the vast majority of which have Ministry of Education authorisation to host JSS.
Senior teachers who report to the Principal must follow rules developed by TSC and the government.
Current headteachers who do not have the qualifications to manage comprehensive schools will be demoted and likely given fewer responsibility. They will so lose control of the institution’s money and operations.
Also Read: Blow to Primary School Teachers as TSC terminates Contract in JSS
Some schools have been operating without permanent leaders due to the commission’s failure to attract candidates for administration posts.
It will be led by the accounting officer for all divisions of the comprehensive school.
The composition of the school’s Board of Management (BOM) may also change.
The JSSs are now overseen by a temporary subcommittee comprised of members of the BoM for elementary schools.
Furthermore, the PWPER recommends limiting the number of BoM members to nine or 10. It contends that the current boards are bloated.
In a separate plan, the comprehensive and senior secondary school heads would act as Ministry of Education representatives rather than the TSC.
TSC Cuts JSS Contracts, a Blow to Primary School Teachers
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