Centre awards the best teachers

More than 11,000 mathematics and science teachers have been trained online since the Covid-19 pandemic struck in March.

The Centre for Mathematics, Science and Technology Education in Africa (CEMASTEA) has in the same period honored 1,163 County Trainers in all the 47 devolved units.

CEMASTEA Director Jacinta Akatsa, said during a virtual ceremony to recognise and award outstanding teachers and trainers that the endeavour had ensured quality training and learning continued even as schools are closed in the wake of the pandemic.

She said the awards comprising of certificates, trophies, laptops, and cash were meant to motivate and encourage the teachers and praised e-Kitabu, a premier local e-book store that distributes books and interactive content for partnering with CEMASTEA to pull it through.

Enable teachers

“Besides the awards, it was the collaboration between e-Kitabu and CEMASTEA that an online competition was conceived and introduced to enable teachers to develop and deliver content online to learners using a suitable learning management system.The competition started at the county level and proceeded to the regional and national levels,” stated Akatsa

The Teachers Service Commission Director of Quality Assurance Dr Reuben Nthamburi who represented the Chief Executive Officer Nancy Macharia said teachers needed lots of emotional support to efficiently execute remote teaching.

“It calls for professional flexibility, patience, personal strength, and endurance to deliver in unpredictable circumstances where technology such as the internet can suddenly fail midstream.

Teaching remotely is truly challenging and only the best excel,” said Dr Nthamburi.