KUPPET defends push for Junior Secondary School autonomy

Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) Secretary-General Akelo Misori has defended the union’s call for autonomy for Junior Secondary Schools (JSS), saying the government has failed to properly engage education stakeholders on the matter.

Speaking on Spice FM on Tuesday, October 7, Misori accused the Ministry of Education of resisting new ideas and displaying “a conservative mindset.”

He also cited massive resource wastage, noting that new classrooms had been built while existing ones remained unused.

“A stronger plan was needed to ensure a smooth JSS transition. Some schools have teachers with only one specialty, leaving key learning areas uncovered,” the KUPPET SG said.

He faulted the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) for what he termed the “hurried” recruitment of 46,000 teachers without a clear implementation plan, arguing that JSS remains dysfunctional because primary school teachers were not retrained for the new curriculum.

“What we have is a problem of debriefing; there are ego issues that should be addressed. We have a ministry that is not listening. If they could engage the teachers, then the debate around this autonomy will be resolved, and we move forward.’’

Misori urged both the Education Ministry and TSC to take a more proactive approach in addressing challenges in the education sector.

“If the President’s Working Taskforce report is not being implemented properly, we expect the ministry and TSC to be awakened by these voices and sit down with teachers to discuss the issues.”

On Sunday, during World Teachers’ Day celebrations at the Moi International Sports Centre, KUPPET National Chairperson Omboko Milemba also expressed optimism about the push for JSS autonomy, saying the union had written to the commission to initiate discussions with the government.

KUPPET and JSS tutors have been advocating the establishment of a distinct administrative framework for JSS, separate from the primary schools where they are currently based.

The union argues that the government’s decision to domicile JSS in primary schools has created confusion, saying that key learning facilities such as laboratories already exist in secondary schools.

This, even as  teachers in Kilifi county,  JSS teachers plan to petition parliament to actualize the autonomy, saying they will start will collecting signatures while also calling teachers from other counties to join.

They noted that with the autonomy they will enjoy specialized leadership, dedicated resources, clear accountability, and an independent co-curricular table separate from the primary school.