All public universities have been instructed to immediately begin retraining secondary school teachers to equip them for the rollout of Grade 10 in January 2026 under the Competency-Based Education (CBE) system.

Higher Education Principal Secretary Beatrice Inyangala raised concern that many secondary school teachers lack the skills needed to deliver the new curriculum across the three career pathways: Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM); Social Sciences; and Arts and Sports.

“You realise that our students will be transitioning to senior school in January. The teachers who are going to teach them are our product. These teachers do not have competencies in the three pathways,” she said during a meeting with university council chairpersons in Mombasa.

She noted that about 154,200 teachers must be retrained, starting in July, to deliver the senior school content effectively. Inyangala said the retooling programme must be a standing agenda item in all future university council meetings.

“We have a very urgent assignment beginning in July to start developing those levels so that we can actualise in-service for the teachers who will be teaching in senior schools,” she added.

About 1.2 million learners are expected to transition from junior to senior school in early 2026.

National Assembly Education Committee Chairperson Julius Melly said the government has made adequate preparations for the transition and teacher training. He revealed that Sh600 million has been allocated under the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) to support the exercise.

“There is no cause for alarm. We have time. Retooling and capacity building are aspects of teaching. Every other time, teachers undergo several trainings on new skills, new methodology of teaching, and new ways of handling their subjects,” Melly said.
“Teaching and learning are an aspect of everyday life of a teacher, so it’s not a new thing.”

Meanwhile, Grade 9 learners are currently selecting their preferred pathways and subjects, guided by a month-long sensitisation campaign by the Ministry of Education.

Speaking in Turbo, Uasin Gishu County, Basic Education Principal Secretary Julius Bitok urged parents to assist their children in the decision-making process. “It is an easy process,” he said while commissioning a multipurpose hall at ACK Kaplelach High School.

TSC data shows that since the launch of the CBE system seven years ago, over 229,292 primary teachers and 75,000 junior school teachers have already been trained. More than 7,000 school heads have also undergone capacity building.

In April, during a national schools conference in Mombasa, chief principals appealed to the ministry to speed up the training.

Outgoing TSC CEO Nancy Macharia reaffirmed the commission’s commitment to ensure teachers are ready for the Grade 10 rollout. “The employer is doing everything to ensure that all teaching staff are adequately trained to make them ready for the first cohort of Grade 10 students in 2026,” she said.

Learners currently in junior school are expected to sit their Kenya Junior School Education Assessment in November. The Ministry of Education will then place them in senior schools based on their choices, talents, academic interests and long-term goals.