Education Ministry Admits Deficit in Specialised Teachers for New Curriculum

FOLLOW US ON

Education Ministry Admits Deficit in Specialised Teachers for New Curriculum

The Ministry of Education has admitted a severe shortage of specialized teachers as Kenya prepares to take in the first Competency-Based Education (CBE) learners to senior school in January.

With just three months to the rollout of senior school under the competency-based curriculum, the government has revealed that the education system is short of 137,500 teachers across the country.

Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba confirmed the gap, saying despite massive recruitment in recent years, specialized areas are still critically understaffed. These include pre-technical studies, science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) subjects, home science, art and craft, music and social studies.

“The shortage is acute in specialized subjects like social studies, integrated science, pre-technical studies and various vocational and STEM fields. This calls for expanded and targeted teacher training programmes, especially at diploma and degree levels,” said the CS at an education conference in Mombasa.

Widening Staffing Gap

A Teachers Service Commission (TSC) report shows junior schools are short of 72,422 teachers while senior schools need 65,070 more. The commission has 431,831 teachers while 369,430 are registered but not on its payroll.

Although enrolment in teacher training institutions has gone up, the supply of teachers is still mismatched with the new curriculum. Public diploma teacher training colleges can only take in 49,000 trainees while universities have over 183,000 students in education programmes. But most are pursuing arts degrees, few are in science-based courses and postgraduate enrolment is low.

Challenges in Specialized Areas

Under the new senior school model, learners will choose from three pathways—social sciences, arts and sports, and STEM. But Principal Secretary for Basic Education, Prof. Julius Bitok, noted the gaps in specialized areas including indigenous languages.

“There is no teacher in this country who can teach an indigenous language. They have not gone through any training. No university or college trains for an indigenous language,” Prof. Bitok said adding the ministry is working to project teacher needs for the next five years.

The government wants to ensure every trained teacher is employed by 2027, align training with demand to prevent oversupply in some areas.

Teacher Training Reforms

According to KUCCPS, 68,972 students were admitted into education programmes in 2025/26 cycle, 40% of all degree placements. But experts say training must shift to competency based needs.

The Presidential Working Party on Education Reforms has recommended structured internships, mentorship and mandatory retooling to equip teachers for Competency Based Teacher Education (CBTE).

To address the gaps, the ministry plans to raise entry requirements for teacher training. P1 and Early Childhood Development Education (ECDE) certificate holders will be required to move to diploma level, while diploma entry grades will be standardised to C (Plain) in KCSE with stricter subject requirements for STEM.

Other proposals include establishing the Kenya Teacher Training College and the Kenya School of Teacher and Education Management to harmonise training and introduce compulsory one year retooling for teachers who graduated before 2023.

CS Ogamba asked stakeholders – TSC, TVET institutions, private schools and county governments – to coordinate teacher recruitment and deployment to ensure equitable access to quality education across the country.

Also Read: Education Cs Migos Ogamba Makes Dramatic U-Turn on Lecturers’ Strike

Education Ministry Admits Deficit in Specialised Teachers for New Curriculum