The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) has rolled out allowances for teachers in special schools to attract and retain them in the learning institutions.
TSC Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Nancy Macharia stated that the Commission will pay Readers Facilitation or Aid allowance to visually impaired teachers, those with hearing impairments, mute teachers, and those with physical disabilities.
Speaking when she appeared before the Cohesion and Equal Opportunities Committee led by Adan Haji, she also revealed that the country is facing a shortage of 5,362 teachers.
“Special school allowances is also another incentive introduced to teachers with special education skills.”
“These incentives are in addition to standard allowances such as hardship and commuter among others as one way of recognising the additional challenges facing the teachers”.
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On the teachers’ shortage, the CEO explained that TSC hired and deployed 1,763 teachers to schools in May.
Further, she said that in September this year, January, and June next year, TSC will post another 3,600 teachers to the schools.
“Due to budget constraints the Commission has developed a phased deployment of teachers to Special needs schools to address the shortage.”
Similarly, she revealed that the Commission has developed and implemented a unique staffing norm for special needs education schools.
Macharia said TSC will consider class size determined by the type and severity of learners' disabilities for each teacher.
“For example, the class size for mentally handicapped learners is set at four students while the class size for physically handicapped learners is 15 students.”
Macharia said the regulations ensure teachers give adequate attention to special needs learners.
“The less the number of special needs learners per teacher the better for provision of quality services,” Macharia said.
