Call on teachers to embrace performance contracts

By SAM OTIENO and WILLIS OKETCH

Head teachers have been urged to embrace performance contracts in schools.

The teachers were also told to push for review of the current school curriculum within six months to conform to the country’s economic development goals.

While making a presentation at the ongoing head teachers’ conference in Mombasa, the Director of Social and Political Pillars at the Vision 2030 Delivery Secretariat Gituro Wainaina said schools should also re-examine their current assessment practices.

"Mismatch between level of skills imparted and requirements of labour market exists and are not realigned in order to meet demands of economy and improve students’ opportunities to participate effectively in development process and for globalisation," he said.

Everything these school heads carried had to be checked by the Wild Waters security officer Mornica Shally, before they could proceed to their meeting at the hotel in Mombasa, yesterday.

The theme of the conference is: The role of education in vision 2030.

Dr Wainaina said there exist weak linkages between university education and industrial needs, hence reforming the curriculum to provide relevant skills and competence for national development and global competitiveness remains a priority.

Accept to sign

He said it was time head teachers accepted to sign performance contracts. The Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut) has opposed the introduction of performance contracts in schools, citing the current teachers’ shortage.

Other civil servants have, however, been subjected to performance contracts to improve service delivery in the public service.

According to Wainaina, the teacher-training curriculum does not adequately address modern needs of ensuring that graduates are well suited to cope with globalisation challenges.

Wainaina said the teacher training curriculum needed to be reviewed to modernise it to reflect changing technologies and delivery methods.

He said the Government had not employed teachers to address the shortage because of economic hardship.

School managers, said Wainaina, should be ready to manage and conform to what the Vision 2030 has in store for the country’s education sector.

Wainaina said the vision would see the construction of new schools as well as expand and rehabilitate existing ones especially at secondary school level to cater for higher transition rates.

While taking the school heads through the country’s economic goal, Wainaina said the Government would recruit 28,000 more teachers in phases.

A total of 21,400 teachers will be hired in primary and another 6,600 for secondary levels and post-primary institutions by 2030.

Other aspects of the vision is efficient teacher utilisation and an ambitious computer supply programme to target 20,000 public primary schools, 4,000 public secondary schools, 22 primary teacher training colleges, two diploma colleges and seven public universities.

Through the vision, Wainaina said, the Government will also construct, rehabilitate and equip at least one boarding primary school in each Arid and Semi Arid constituency.

"There will be establishment of voucher system targeting vulnerable groups by rolling out voucher system for learners from poor households and children rescued from early marriages and child abuse, consistent with voucher system being implemented by Ministries of Health and Home Affairs," said Wainaina.

He pointed out the challenges facing the sector as quality and relevance of education, low transition rates, access issues like gender disparity, effects of HIV/Aids, national assessment, examinations and certification and teacher management.

He said transition rate from primary to secondary school, estimated at 60 per cent, and from secondary to university level at three per cent, is still below desired levels of 75 per cent and 15 per cent by 2012 for the two levels respectively.