Shock for teachers as CUE bans school-based studies

Teachers have been dealt a major blow in their quest to acquire degrees after the universities regulator moved to enforce a ban on studies during schools holidays.

A detailed brief presented to Education Cabinet Secretary Amina Mohammed this week says the school-based programme stands abolished and calls for strict enforcement.

“The Commission for University Education (CUE) should categorically communicate to all universities and the public that, based on the recommendation of the Quality Audit Inspection, the School/Institution–Based/Inter-Term Mode of Delivery was abolished with effect from February 17, 2017,” reads the report.

Academic shortcomings

The report is among six documents presented to Amina by CUE officials this week. It contains recommendations of a Joint Working Group on Quality Assurance set up last year to draw corrective and preventive measures that must be implemented by institutions to correct the rot in higher education.

The report revealed major academic shortcomings in universities. But the directive on school-based programme is what will shock the more than 340,000 teachers on government payroll.

It means institutions will restructure the programmes to adhere to the contact hour rule, as it emerged that they ignored the requirements set out in the guidelines and standards of universities.

“The commission notes that the original school-based programmes lasted for eight years while the current programmes have been telescoped to cover two and a half years, thus compromising the quality of the degree awarded,” says CUE.

In its proposal, CUE wants an immediate stop to the school-based programme and proposes that those currently enrolled in them graduate after eight years.

“For programmes already in place, the commission recommends that they revert to the original eight-year duration so as to allow adequate delivery and internalisation of the material covered, with teaching period or practicum designed to 12 weeks,” reads the report.

The commission found out that the school-based programmes were introduced without legal basis and that it has compromised the quality of university education.

“We therefore recommend that this mode of delivery of academic programmes be abolished forthwith,” reads the report.

To ensure compliance, the commission says it will constantly monitor progress as some institutions are reinventing the practice through different names. The news comes as a major setback to thousands of teachers who attend classes in public and private universities during school holidays.

Just last week, the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) warned teachers against using school resources to complete their personal academic assignments.

TSC also cautioned teachers who have disowned their teaching duties to pursue studies under the school-based programme.

“The commission reiterates that while it appreciates that the attainment of higher qualifications is beneficial to the teaching service, the same should not be undertaken at the expense of learners’ education,” said CEO Nancy Macharia in a circular dated April 17.

Macharia directed institutional administrators to compile a comprehensive list and details of teachers undertaking private studies on school-based programme and submit it to their respective sub-county directors for monitoring.

Same curriculum

CUE says after auditing six private and 10 public universities between August and December 2016, it emerged that the model developed primarily for education programmes had expanded to include many others.

“This mode of delivery has spread to clusters including business and economics, humanities and social sciences, engineering, medical sciences, technology, visual and performing arts, applied and human sciences and economics among others,” reads the report.

CUE says delivery of the programme focused on ‘sessions’, which do not fit in provisions on calendar mode and duration under Academic Organisation and Structure of The Universities Standards and Guidelines (2014).

An academic year ought to have 120 hours. A credit hour is equivalent to a minimum of 13 instructional hours.

Under the school-based programme, teachers only attend classes during school holidays in the months of April, August and December.

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