No D for teachers: TSC rubbishes CS Amina’s directive, send over 3,000 students packing

In revolt against former Education CS Amina Mohamed’s order that teachers’ training facilities should take in KCSE graduates with as low as D grades for Diploma courses, the Teachers’ Service Commission has kicked out over 3,000 of these students out of school.

A total of 3,265 students admitted to teachers training colleges with low entry grades in October have been kicked out  after studying for two terms.

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Several colleges have already released the trainees following a directive by Education Principal Secretary Belio Kipsang last week.

Mr Kipsang also withdrew Legal Notice No118 of 2018 which had lowered the minimum admission requirements for diploma and certificate entry to D (plain) for certificate, C- for Diploma, and C+  for degree courses.

The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) in a paid up advert in local dailies maintains that it has the mandate  — under Article 237(3)(a) — to set entry grades for teacher education programmes.

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“You are hereby directed to bring to the attention of all principals of teacher training colleges, both public and private, that entry grades for persons entering teacher training colleges shall remain as prescribed in legal notice No.50 of 2016,” said Dr Kipsang in a letter dated April 26 to all regional directors of Education.

Some of the students have since moved to court to challenge the decision. Hearing of the case will  be on May 9, in Nairobi.

Mr Abdishukri Adan Mohamed, through lawyer Steve Mogaka, has filed an application at the Constitutional Court seeking to have the trainees continue with their studies. “The students applied for the training, they were selected and have studied for two terms after paying fees and it will be unfair to kick them out of TTCs,” said Mr Mogaka.

This as the court had initially directed the Education ministry and the TSC to harmonise the framework to allow admissions to the 27 TTCs across the country.

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