Controversy Surrounds TSC Promotion Criteria for 25,000 Educators

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Controversy Surrounds TSC Promotion Criteria for 25,000 Educators

Secondary school principals have formally communicated their dissatisfaction to the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) regarding the promotion criteria, asserting that it is inequitable for certain educators.

The principals, through the Kenya Secondary Schools Heads Association (KESSHA), have submitted a petition to both the TSC and the National Assembly, contending that the employer’s quota system for teacher promotions disproportionately disadvantages regions with a higher concentration of qualified teachers.

This petition pertains to the promotional interviews conducted in January 2025 for 19,943 positions that were advertised by the TSC at the end of the preceding year.

The implementation of a quota-based system is likely to create an environment where educators from specific regions face disadvantages, as it unjustly limits opportunities for qualified candidates from areas with a greater number of competent and deserving individuals. Conversely, it inadvertently favors candidates from regions with fewer qualified teachers, regardless of their lesser experience and lower performance evaluations, as articulated in a letter signed by KESSHA Chairman Willy Kuria.

Kuria indicated that the association escalated the matter to the National Assembly Education Committee after receiving no response from the TSC. He alleged that, in certain regions, the TSC invited teachers for interviews who had not fulfilled the requisite six-month tenure in the same job group.

“We obtained this information from county directors, and when we raised our concerns with the TSC, they did not contest the validity of the data. This situation primarily benefited areas classified as Arid and Semi-Arid Lands (ASAL),” stated Mr. Kuria.

He noted that teachers who applied for promotions to Job Group Deputy D2 and below (Deputy Principal II – Secondary School) were neither shortlisted nor invited for interviews, despite fulfilling the established criteria.

“Evidently, this discrepancy occurred in some regions, while in others, the six-month requirement was duly considered, leading to the shortlisting of teachers. Consequently, this will create significant advantages for some regions while severely disadvantaging others, which can be accurately characterized as marginalization,” Mr. Kuria remarked.

He cautioned that if this trend persists, it could result in certain teachers remaining stagnant in their job groups due to the geographical locations of their assignments.

Promotional interviews should prioritize merit, experience, and individual accomplishments. The enforcement of a regional quota system undermines these foundational principles by promoting educators based on their geographical affiliations,” the petition further asserts.

Mr. Kuria urged the commission to explore alternative strategies to foster inclusivity and diversity.

“We implore the TSC to transparently communicate the criteria and qualifications required and to adhere strictly to these standards to prevent creating a false sense of hope among applicants,” he stated.

The promotion of teachers has posed a significant challenge for the commission, primarily due to budgetary limitations, resulting in many educators remaining stagnant in their respective job groups for extended periods.

Recently, the Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers (Kuppet) demanded TSC to publish a list of all teachers who are eligible for promotion in the 2024 – 2025 cycle.

Further the union called for fair distribution of promotion vacancies across the country. According to the union, the TSC allocated vacancies equally among the 47 counties, regardless of disparities in the number of teachers in each region.

“Given the disparities in staffing levels across the country, such distribution is inherently flawed and unfair to many teachers. A county which has over 11,000 teachers has been allocated the same number of vacancies as another with just 1,000 teachers.

The clear implication is that a teacher in the smaller county is 10 times more likely to get promoted compared to his or her counterpart in the more populous county,” said Kuppet acting secretary-general Moses Nthurima.