TSC delocalization Nightmare, why school heads are worried of April mass transfers
The ghost of delocalization, why school heads are worried of April mass transfers
The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) will transfer thousands of teachers to new stations starting this April till early May, its CEO Dr. Nancy Macharia said last month.
Macharia said this process will happen across all schools and its main aim is to balance out staff.
She said teachers should not worry because the process will be fair and will end on May 9.
However the Commission revelation that it will conduct mass transfer of teachers this month has caused a stir among head teachers.
The announcement has not augured well with most school heads who are haunted by memories of delocalization that affected their colleagues.
Delocalization process for school heads began early 2018 and which has resulted in head teachers and principals of primary and secondary schools being moved from schools in their home counties or regions to other counties and regions.
It targeted school heads who completed at least ten years in same county. This process will trickle down to deputy and senior teachers and finally teachers.
According to TSC this will help curb corruption in schools, reduce incidences of student indiscipline and bring about a more national outlook in the management of learning institutions.
It was temporarily suspended following numerous outcries as well as pressure from different quarters.
The programme was also affected after the emergence of the Covid19 pandemic.
However sources reveal that the Commission will resume the programme with full force especially after meeting the National Cohesion and Integration Commission (NCIC) which hailed the programme.
TSC and Knut under former secretary general Wilson Sossion locked horns for long over delocalization.
However this has changed especially after signing of Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) 2021 – 2025 in July last year, between TSC and teachers unions Knut, Kuppet and Kusnet that allowed delocalization.
Only teachers with medical conditions as well as those who are about to retire will not be affected in the delocalization exercise.
In March last year TSC dismissed claims that there were plans for mass transfer of teachers countrywide after the national exams were completed.
“Our attention has been drawn to a story in the Standard of today, 9th March 2021, under the headline TSC sets pace for Fresh round of mass transfers. The TSC wishes to refute the claims made in the story that the Commission plans to conduct a mass transfer of teachers countrywide,” said Rita Wahome, the Director of Staffing.
The rumour on mass transfer had spread fast after the Commission requested details of teachers who over stayed in one station.
However during the release of KCPE 2021 results, Dr. Nancy Macharia noted that the Commission will have mass transfers so to have a proportionate number of teachers in public schools after it emerged that some schools were understaffed while others had more than required teachers.
This means that schools with more teachers will have some of their teachers transferred to understaffed schools.
According to the commission, the exercise aims to improve on the teacher to learner ratio.
Macharia disclosed that there was a shortage of 114,581 teachers in primary and post-primary institutions.
She linked the shortage of tutors to increased enrolment arising from the high number of school-age children, the 100 per cent transition policy and registration of new schools.
Dr Macharia said that despite the shortage, the commission was determined to ensure prudent and fair distribution of the existing teachers in both primary and secondary schools.
“From time to time, we have had to review staffing placements to ensure no part of our country is disadvantaged in terms of sharing the limited teaching resources,” she added.
Dr Macharia assured teachers that the exercise will be conducted humanely while ensuring adequate consultations with relevant officers.
“The commission will shortly be asking our field officers to conduct a routine exercise of assessing their sub-counties to ensure that all schools have balanced teacher to learner ratios ahead of the start of the new academic calendar,” she explained.
However the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) which supported delocalization and promised to cement it with law failed to proceed after the Supreme court ruling last week.