Education Cabinet Secretary Ezekiel Machogu has asked Teacher Training Colleges (TTCs) in the country to begin fine-tuning themselves to produce high quality teachers who can effectively implement the Competency Based Curriculum in schools.

In a speech read on his behalf by Principal Secretary at State Department for Technical, Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Esther Muoria (pictured) during the Kenya Teachers Colleges Principals’ Association (KTCPA) Annual Conference in Mombasa, Machogu challenged TTCs both public and private to pay special attention in producing teachers who are not only high quality but also have ability to nurture the tender minds of children from early years until they become skilled and responsible citizens.”

High quality

“This Conference has come at an opportune time when you, as teacher educators, must chart the way forward in ensuring that the teachers you produce from your colleges are of high quality and are able to effectively implement the Competency Based Curriculum in the schools.  Your primary responsibility entails not only development of quality teachers for our schools, but also teachers with the ability to nurture the tender minds of our children from early years until they become skilled and responsible citizens of this great nation,” stated the CS.

According to the CS, Teacher educators will play a central role in implementing the reports as captured in the Presidential Working Party on Education Reform that requires teacher educators to not only train the pre-service Teacher Trainees but also in-service the practicing teachers to make them effective in the implementation of CBC.

“I am aware that the TTCs commenced the implementation of the Competency Based Teacher Education (CBTE) with the first cohort of pre-service and upgrade in 2021. I am happy to note that the first cohort of the upgrade trainees graduated in December 2022 and a number of them have already been employed by the TSC. I have no doubt that teachers leaving your colleges at the end of the course will have been thoroughly prepared to implement the education reforms,” he said.

 “You are aware that there is a paradigm shift globally in the preparation of teachers as they will be expected to empower learners to acquire the 21st century skills and competencies. It is therefore a requirement that the teachers we train will be empowered with the 21st century learner-centred pedagogies and appropriate digital literacy skills,” The CS added.

On her part PS Muoria said plans are underway to map out TTCs and TVET institutions that fall within one geographical location with a view of coming up with modalities on sharing training equipment. “As TVETs We are going to partner with TTCs so that we can be able to use the equipment that we have in our institutions together so that we can be able to use the equipment that we have in our institutions together because this equipment is for Kenyans…Teachers are trained how to be competent using practical and because the equipment is already available in our TVET we are going to have a conversation where we are going to agree on sharing the equipment ,” Muoria said while speaking to journalists at the side-lines of the conference in Mombasa.

On his part KTCPA Chairman Saul Barasa said all the Teacher Training Colleges have embraced the new curriculum called Competence Based Teacher Education Program.

“The primary teacher training colleges we have the diploma in primary teacher education, the diploma in early childhood teacher education and the diploma in secondary teacher education and I want to confirm that all colleges across the country both public and private have all started these programs and are up and running,” Barasa said.