The Kenya Union of Post Primary School Teachers (KUPPET) is now calling for the establishment of guidelines that will ensure teachers take charge of curriculum activities in schools.
Speaking during the Kenya Primary Teachers Heads Association (KEPSHA) Western Regional Conference in Busia on Friday, KUPPET Chairman Omboko Milemba said there is need for stakeholders to give a clear guideline on curricular activities in schools.
“We are urging the Ministry of Education, parliament and all education stakeholders to give proper direction on who should be in charge of school games, drama, music and other co-curricular activities,” he said, adding that only registered teachers should be in charge of these activities in our schools.
Milemba called on political leaders to ensure they do not promote their political agenda by involving students in their affairs.
“We should not include our students in our politics. Students are apolitical as they don’t take part in politics. We should avoid politicizing schooling and the curriculum so that we allow our students to showcase their talents well,” he said.
He argued that while the ability to write plays is given to different people, the implementation and direction of those plays should only be limited to registered teachers in various schools.
The chairman at the same time said that Members of Parliament are working on changes to the Teachers Service Commission act that will enable proper representation of teachers in the commission.
“Our challenges can be handled and fixed by having a representation in TSC. We are working on a bill that will change the TSC act so that we have a representative of teachers in the commission so that the needs of teachers can be handled well just like other commissions,” he said.
Milemba lauded the government for its effort in ensuring that more teachers have been employed to take care of the learners in the schools.
“The government has employed 76000 teachers and that’s a big step. My clerical call is for the P1 teachers who left colleges from 2011 to 2015 to be employed.
Busia county KUPPET secretary general Moffat Okisai echoed the sentiment of Milemba stating that the teachers should take charge of all school activities.
“Let us not politicize our education. We want the issue concerning the play of “Echoes of War” to be properly dissolved to avoid unnecessary tensions in our schools when students resume for the second term.” Said Okisai.
Okisai also assured teachers that the union is there to ensure they are not subjected to any intimidation.
“Let us try to moderate what is supposed to be for the consumption of the public. There should be no form of intimidation in the education sector,” he said.
The leaders’ sentiments follow countrywide uproar that was sparked off by the contentious play by Butere girls secondary school that was expected to be displayed at the 63rd national schools and colleges music and drama festivals being held in Nakuru County.”
By Rodgers Omondi and Salome Alwanda
