Government Sets Aside Sh952m For CBE Teacher Training

By Staff Writer

The government has committed Sh952 million to further teacher capacity development as Kenya advances its transition to Competency-Based Education (CBE), with more than 220,000 teachers already retooled for the system.

President William Ruto said the additional funding would prepare teachers for new learning areas as the pioneer CBE cohort enters Senior School, where students are expected to pursue different pathways.

The government has sought to address uncertainty surrounding the transition, including the placement of Junior School and the preparedness of teachers and schools.

Ruto said the administration acted on recommendations by the Presidential Working Party on Education Reform by domiciling Junior School in existing primary schools.

“Within weeks of assuming office, I appointed the Presidential Working Party on Education Reform. Acting on its recommendations, we domiciled Junior School in our existing primary schools, allowing children to continue learning close to home and giving parents, teachers, and schools certainty about the transition,” Ruto said.

More than 220,000 teachers have since been retooled for CBE, while the current budget provides additional funding for their preparation.

“This year’s budget provides a further Sh952 million for capacity development to prepare teachers for the new learning areas,” Ruto said.

The teacher training is being accompanied by investment in infrastructure needed to support the new learning pathways.

The government, working with the National Government-Constituencies Development Fund, has built more than 23,000 classrooms and is equipping 1,600 laboratories to support science education and Senior School pathways.

“More teachers require more classrooms. New classrooms require well-prepared teachers. New pathways require laboratories and specialised skills. And every learner who succeeds in school deserves a clear and affordable path into higher education,” Ruto said.

The President also linked the education reforms to the changing demands of the labor market, saying teachers must prepare learners for an economy increasingly shaped by technology, artificial intelligence, data and scientific skills.

“Our children cannot learn tomorrow’s skills from yesterday’s methods,” Ruto said.

He challenged teachers to continually upgrade their own skills and use technology, inquiry and experimentation to improve learning.

“I therefore challenge every teacher to be the first learner in the classroom. Master the digital tools. Model the curiosity you want to see in your learners. Reward the question as much as the answer. Make room for experiment. Build classrooms where failure is a lesson, not a verdict,” he said.

Teacher professional development is supported by the Teachers Service Commission and institutions including the Centre for Mathematics, Science and Technology Education in Africa, the Kenya Education Management Institute and the Kenya Institute of Special Education.

Ruto said Parliament could strengthen the system by anchoring continuous teacher professional development in law as it considers ongoing education reforms.

“As Parliament considers the ongoing education reform proposals, we have an opportunity to anchor teacher preparation and continuous professional development firmly in law,” he said.

The emphasis on teacher preparation comes as the government seeks to increase uptake of science, technology, engineering and mathematics in Senior School.

Ruto said 58 percent of the pioneer CBE cohort selected the STEM pathway, while mathematics emerged as the best-performing subject in the previous KCSE examination.

He described the education reforms as part of Kenya’s wider economic transformation strategy, arguing that the skills developed in schools will influence the country’s capacity to produce, innovate and compete in global markets.

“This is not simply an education agenda. It is an economic transformation agenda,” Ruto said.

The government is therefore combining teacher training with classroom construction, laboratory development and curriculum reforms as the pioneer CBE cohort progresses through Senior School.

For teachers, the immediate priority is to acquire the skills needed to deliver new learning areas. For students, the reforms are intended to strengthen scientific, digital, practical and problem-solving skills as they prepare for further education and employment.