TSC has announced that 20,000 Junior Secondary School (JSS) teachers on one year internship will start receiving their salaries in February. These teachers reported to their schools on 6th January 2025 but delays in submission of casualty returns by school heads affected payment of their January salaries.
At the same time, TSC is processing 46,000 teachers from internship to permanent and pensionable (PnP) status which started in January.
Payroll Delays
School Heads of Institutions (HOIs) were found to be the cause of the delays in submitting online casualty returns. These returns are necessary for salary processing before the payroll is closed. Teachers on PnP terms will get their enhanced January salaries with leave allowances while JSS interns will start getting their stipends in February.
Junior Secondary School Teacher Shortage
Kenya has a major JSS teacher crisis. TSC CEO Dr. Nancy Macharia:
- 149,350 teachers needed to handle Grades 7, 8 and 9 under CBC.
- TSC has 76,928 JSS teachers, 51.5% of the requirement.
JSS teaching staff composition:
- 20,000 JSS interns recruited this year.
- 39,550 JSS interns recruited and later confirmed to PnP terms.
- 8,378 P1 teachers deployed to JSS in 2023 and 2024.
- 9,000 JSS teachers recruited directly to PnP terms.
Retooling of Teachers for CBC and CBA
TSC has been retooling teachers to handle CBC and CBA.
- 229,292 teachers have been retooled since April 2019.
- 60,642 JSS teachers were trained for CBC and CBA between May 2023 and November 2024.
As part of addressing the teacher shortage, TSC plans to deploy 6,000 Primary Teacher Education (PTE) graduates to JSS by April 2025.
Internship Program Details
The Teacher Internship Program is a structured program to provide practical teaching experience to unemployed registered teachers. Key features:
- Duration: One year (though many interns have served for two years).
- Monthly stipend: Ksh 20,000 with statutory deductions (NHIF, NSSF, Housing Levy).
- Certification: Interns get a certificate upon completion.
Internship as a stepping stone to Permanent Employment
Internship has proven to be a way to permanent employment. In the recruitment of 46,000 PnP teachers, TSC gave 50 marks to interns and they were automatically converted to permanent terms.
Current Recruitment and Replacement
8,707 replacement vacancies for teachers were advertised in December 2024. Interns were encouraged to apply. These are to fill the gaps caused by retirements, resignations or other exits.