If the suggestions of the Presidential Working Party on Education Reforms are adopted, the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) will hire pastors and Imams to support Value-based Education (VbE) in schools.
The report that President William Ruto received on Monday, July 1, states that stakeholders in the education sector underlined a need to raise awareness of VbE.
The taskforce suggested that in order to accomplish this, all members of the school community should be involved, values should be incorporated into all subject areas, and formal chaplaincy programmes should be developed and implemented in schools.
The committee suggested that the Ministry of Education (MoE) be tasked with creating established norms and programmes for chaplaincy (religious and moral counselling).
If the government decides to follow the recommendation, the MoE, professional counselling organisation for lawyers, and faith-based organisations will work together to establish the curricula.
“TSC shall employ and deploy teachers as chaplains/imams in schools and the chaplains/imams can be shared between schools,” PWP recommended.
The task force did not outline the educational prerequisites for pastors and imams who will work with TSC. Furthermore, the religious leaders who will be chosen for the position were not mentioned.
TSC will also be in charge of making sure that schools uphold each student’s right to freedom of religion.
“A provision on facilitation of religious rights of learners in schools including the sponsored schools should be included in the Basic Education Act,” reads part of the report.
The proposal also suggested giving the Education Cabinet Secretary the responsibility of holding consultative forums with all national religious groups. The proposal’s goal, according to the report, is to create regulations aimed at facilitating the exercise of all students’ religious freedoms in institutions of basic education.