Ladies and gentlemen,
It is my honour to join you for the official launch of the Classroom Realities Project which is a deliberate commitment as a University to strengthen the preparation of teachers for the demands of contemporary classrooms.
At Egerton University, teacher education has long been central to our mandate of shaping competent professionals for national development. Today, we find ourselves operating within a dynamic education landscape, as Kenya continues to implement Competency-Based Education. This transition calls upon institutions such as ours to critically re-examine not only what we teach, but how we prepare those who will teach. While our academic foundation remains strong, we acknowledge the persistent gap between theory and classroom practice that many student teachers experience.
The Classroom Realities Project is our strategic response to this challenge. It reflects Egerton University’s commitment to innovation in teacher training by anchoring preparation on practice, mentorship, and continuous reflection. Through this initiative, we are strengthening the practicum experience using competency-based tools, structured mentorship frameworks, enhanced collaboration with our partner schools, and robust monitoring and evaluation systems. This is a shift from isolated supervision to a more sustained and developmental approach to teacher preparation.
The introduction of digital observation and feedback tools, competency-based assessment rubrics, reflective journals and video-supported lesson analysis will significantly enrich how our student teachers learn from practice.
Equally important is the structured mentorship framework, which brings experienced educators into closer engagement with our trainees, supported by targeted capacity building for supervisors and school leaders.
As a University, we are confident that this initiative will produce graduates who are better prepared, more confident and responsive to the realities of the classroom, while also strengthening our partnerships with schools.
I call upon all stakeholders to support and actively participate in this initiative as we collectively advance the quality of teacher education.
Thank you.
