TSC Sets Professional Teaching Standards Each Teacher Must Acquire Through TPD
The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) has come up with seven teaching standards referred to as Kenya Professional Teaching Standards (KePTS) which should be possessed by all Kenyan teachers in their teaching profession.
According to TSC, Teacher Professional Development (TPD) is based on the KePTS which requires teachers to acquire competencies that will enhance 21st-century learning outcomes in the country. It will take a teacher 5 years to complete one module for a particular level. A module is organised in 5 chapters and covers all the seven KePTS standards and will be delivered by service providers accredited by the Commission.
The seven standards are:
Standard 1: Teachers should promote professionalism
Teachers should demonstrate professionalism when engaging and communicating with students, parents and colleagues. The standard models high standards of teaching as prescribed by legal and professional documents, contributes to collaborative, inclusive and friendly schools through participation in activities and partnerships with communities.
It also creates an inclusive classroom environment that supports the social, physical, intellectual, cultural and emotional development of students. It is involved in lifelong learning and continually engages in self-reflection, professional inquiry and professional learning in subject-area content.
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It also requires teachers to stay current in educational theory and innovations in classroom management and their application, to demonstrate understanding of the provision of Education in the Constitution of Kenya, to understand the establishment of TSC, legal and professional documents that TSC operations are anchored on and to observe confidentiality associated with their work, including the recording, storing, access, release and handling of confidential information.
Standard 2: Teachers have pedagogical content knowledge, an understanding of Competency- Based Curriculum and how to implement it
The Standard demonstrates understanding of the broad 21st century students’ outcomes and support systems, understanding of Competency-Based Education (CBE) and how it works, knowledge of Basic Education Curriculum Reform (BECR) 7 core curriculum and the ability to plan teaching with the end in mind using a Backward Instructional Design Model.
It also demonstrates an understanding of major concepts and processes of inquiry central to the content area a teacher teaches and an ability to organize the content into an effective learning and teaching progression. It further helps a teacher to design and implement instructions that integrate BEC seven (7) cross-curricular competencies and higher order skills that ensure learning experiences reflect accurate and current content, applies knowledge and understanding of how students learn to plan a variety of instructional strategies and resources to respond to students’ diverse needs; and integrates the pedagogy of community-service learning in the teachers’ teaching area.
Standard 3: Teacher has knowledge on assessment and reporting
A teacher captures designs assessment For, As and of learning; engages students actively in assessment process in order to develop their capacity to co-construct criteria for success and provides prompt and specific descriptive feedback to students. A teacher uses information from assessment for learning to organise instruction and learning resources and to provide feedback to students to help improve and advance their learning. A teacher also uses information to determine what students know and if they can apply what they know. A teacher designs assessment of learning to demonstrate if the
students have achieved curriculum outcomes and embeds assessment in all levels of lesson planning to meet basic education curriculum outcomes. A teacher designs assessment activities, tasks and strategies like performance tasks, anecdotal records, reflective journals, portfolios, peer assessments, dramatizations, projects, interviews, surveys, self-assessments, observations, rubrics, rating scales among others. He/she also demonstrates an understanding of a range of strategies for reporting learners’ achievements and develops accurate records to inform and communicate student progress in a timely and respectable manner to students and parents.
Standard 4: Teachers know how to create and support inclusive education practices
Teachers design a teaching and learning environment that is responsive to the physical, social, cultural, emotional and learning needs of all students, they involve students in establishing and maintaining classroom procedures and routines and ensure discipline issues are addressed promptly, fairly and respectfully.
They design a learning environment where students have access to both material and human resources to promote their learning, create inclusive classrooms where students with special needs have opportunities to demonstrate their learning in their own way using appropriate resource and support.
Standard 5: Teachers know and promote comprehensive school health and safety
Teachers demonstrate an understanding of the concept of health literacy skills, social determinants of health and comprehensive school health. They demonstrate an understanding of infectious diseases and their sources with a view to reducing learners’ exposure to these health conditions through education. Teachers also demonstrate an understanding of emotional health and stressors and use stress reduction strategies to support learners.
They have an understanding of sexual health education, and are able to teach learners about risky sexual behaviors, drug use and drug addiction.
Standard 6: Teachers have knowledge of financial literacy skills
Teachers demonstrate an understanding of financial matters including financial management, terminologies, concepts and principles and apply various financial planning techniques such as budgeting, cash-flow projections and cost benefit analysis.
Teachers also demonstrate an understanding on procurement and disposal of goods and services as required by the governing laws and regulations and an understanding of stores management and accounting procedures that ensure proper stock control systems are established and maintained in the school for the purposes of accountability.
Standard 7: Teachers know and practice instructional leadership.
Teachers lead in developing and implementing a shared vision for schools and instructions that support all learners. They lead and manage change and build a collaborative school culture for the professional learning community and instructional improvement. Teachers also lead in implementing high quality instruction practices, high quality school-based professional development that is linked to instruction and learners’ achievement.
For Instructional leaders, the 7 Standards are: Taking lead in promoting professionalism, taking lead in pedagogical content knowledge and understanding of CBC and its implementation, leading in creation of an environment that promotes assessment and reporting, taking lead in developing a collaborative professional learning culture, taking lead in creating and supporting inclusive education practices, leading in promoting comprehensive school health and safety and leading in knowledge and application of financial literacy skills.
