TSC has begun a staff balancing exercise that will affect over 8,000 primary school teachers in Kenya. This is part of the Commission’s overall plan to address the staffing imbalances that came with the introduction of Competency Based Curriculum (CBC).
Staff Balancing and Excess Staff
The transition to CBC saw two primary school classes being scraped off, leaving 18,057 excess teachers in the primary school system. TSC directed County and Sub-County Directors to complete a teacher redistribution matrix by February 2025.
Also, TSC will be posting new teachers to schools in February and March to replace 8,707 teachers who exited the system through natural attrition.
Teacher Recruitment and Verification
TSC advertised for 5,862 primary school teachers, 21 junior school teachers and 2,824 secondary school teachers. Before posting these teachers, TSC is verifying their documents.
Documents required for Primary School Teachers:
- National ID.
- Certificate of Registration as a teacher.
- Upgrade Diploma in Primary Teacher Education or UDPTE Certificate (where applicable).
- PTE Certificate.
- KCSE and KCPE certificates, including any retake certificates.
- Letter of Certification of results by KNEC (if applicable).
- School leaving certificates and other testimonials.
- NCPWD Card (where applicable).
- Sworn Affidavit explaining name discrepancies.
Documents required for Post-Primary School Teachers:
- Same as primary school teachers, with the addition of Diploma/Degree certificates and official transcripts.
Note: Serving intern teachers only need to present their ID cards for verification.
January 2025 Teacher Transfers
TSC has approved 14,613 teacher transfers, broken down as follows:
- Primary schools: 10,934 transfers (1,948 headteachers, 189 deputies).
- Secondary schools: 1,316 transfers (226 principals).
- Regional-level transfers: 12,019.
- Inter-regional transfers: 2,594, done at TSC headquarters.
The transfers were approved in December after the national exams to minimize disruption.
Delocalized Teachers
The controversial teacher delocalization policy introduced in 2016 required teachers to work outside their home counties. The policy was heavily opposed and was declared illegal in January 2023 by Parliament. TSC has since been transferring the affected teachers back to their home counties.
Transfer Criteria
TSC transfer policies consider the following:
- Vacancies and replacements.
- Existing staffing norms.
- Medical or personal reasons.
- Equitable teacher distribution to optimize utilization.
Former Education CS Ezekiel Machogu said TSC’s transfer policies are in line with Article 43 of the Constitution to ensure learners across the country access quality education.
TSC Online Transfer Status
Teachers can check their transfer applications online using the following status:
- Pending: Application submitted but awaiting supervisor’s comments.
- Acknowledged: Eligible for transfer; waiting for a vacancy or replacement.
- Not Approved: Request denied due to unmet conditions.
- Approved: Transfer committee approval granted; transfer letter issued.