Education is the backbone of any nation. It is through education that a country can develop its resources and help it grow economically, politically and socially. Teaching has been identified as one of the most fulfilling professions because it gives you opportunities to make an impact on society by helping others acquire knowledge in various fields.
Teacher training is very important in every education system. It is from here that teachers are equipped with skills and knowledge which are very essential to them and how they handle students. It is also a key component in helping improve the quality of education around the world.
In Kenya, there are many challenges that teachers face every day. This blog post will discuss some of the challenges faced by teacher training colleges in Kenya and potential solutions for overcoming them.
Unqualified teacher educators
One of the challenges that teacher training colleges in Kenya face is not having enough qualified educators to train more future teachers. In order for teacher-training programs to be successful and sustainable, they need trained professionals who teach at the college level as well as practicing professional educators with real work experience.
The solution is to recruit qualified educators from other fields, and train them to become teachers. This could be accomplished by offering professional development programs for already-trained professionals in the field of education who are willing to teach at colleges as well as running training sessions on what it means to have a teaching career that is both sustainable and successful.
TSC is already implementing this solutions as it has moved to scrap the Bachelor’s degree of Education programme which will be replaced by a post graduate diploma of education after a student completes his Bachelor’s degree in Arts or Science.
Lack of enough teacher training colleges
Another challenge is lack of enough teacher training colleges .There are only 25 public teachers colleges and 37 private institutions in Kenya .This is not enough to meet the demand of over 180,000 students yearly.
The government can increase the number of government-funded teacher training colleges by allocating funds from their budget to these institutions. They could also use some of this money for scholarships and grants, which would provide much needed financial assistance to students who are interested in pursuing a career as an educator but do not have enough resources or means to do so.
Lack of quality training for teachers
Training institutions often do not provide the quality of training that is needed to be an effective teacher. More so with the introduction of the new curriculum based on the competence based learning, teachers need to be well-equipped with the skills and knowledge required for this.
The government should implement additional teacher-training programs at universities and colleges across Kenya, which will better prepare students for a career in education as well as improve their qualifications for teaching positions.
Outdated curriculum
This is is another challenge that is faced by Kenya’s students pursuing to be teachers. The curriculum is often outdated and does not align with current trends and developments in the teaching profession.
The government should equip schools with the updated competence based curriculum as well as provide teachers with additional training to help them cope with changes that are taking place due to new innovations in technology, such as a computer-based learning environment.
Delay of deployment to schools
After training, teachers are not deployed to schools immediately. They can even take 5 years and above before TSC hires them and post them to schools. This is mainly due to lack of finances to hire all them at one go.
Parliament should allocate enough finances in the fiscal budget that will be enough to hire teachers who finish their training each year.
Traditional methods of teaching
Students are not exposed to new methods of learning. This is due to lack of exposure and training on how to use new methods that are being deployed by TSC to help teachers be more effective at their jobs.
The government should train not only teachers but also students about these new technologies so they can learn appropriate skills for this century.
The government should also work with stake holders to introduce a blended-learning approach in schools. This will allow students to be exposed to traditional and innovative ways of teaching that are geared towards equipping them with skills needed for an ever changing world.
Lack of enough funding
Resources in teachers colleges are limited. This is due to lack of sufficient funding for the sector from government and other stakeholders. This leads to inadequate equipment and facilities as well as learning materials required to provide quality training for graduates who hope to enter into the teaching profession.
The government needs to allocate more funds to the ministry of education, so that it can train enough teachers and equip them with skills that will ensure they are able to do their jobs well.