Early Childhood Schools in Nairobi Get Boost Through Teacher Training Program

A new teacher training initiative designed to uplift early-childhood education in Nairobi has been rolled out, focusing on preschool and nursery classrooms across the county. Launched on September 18, 2025, the programme brought together over 300 Early Childhood Development and Education (ECDE) teachers from public and private schools in Nairobi. Organised by the county’s education department in collaboration with the African Population & Health Research Center (APHRC) and local training college ECDE Teacher Training Centre, the sessions provided hands-on workshops in child-centred pedagogy, play-based learning and inclusive classroom strategies.
The training comes amid growing recognition of significant staffing and infrastructure gaps in Nairobi’s early-years sector. A recent policy brief highlighted that as many as 88 per cent of ECDE teachers in public-funded Nairobi schools lacked qualifications at diploma level or above, underscoring the need for capacity-building. During the sessions, instructors guided teachers through methodologies linked to the Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC), including use of low-cost learning materials, constructing engaging classroom environments and tailoring instruction to children’s developmental stages. As one training lead explained, Our aim is to transform preschool spaces into stimulating environments where children learn through exploration, not mere repetition.
Teachers and early-childhood education advocates welcomed the scheme enthusiastically. Participants reported feeling more confident in designing interactive activities and assessing young learners’ progress, while principals noted a positive shift in classroom atmosphere—from teacher-led drills to shared inquiry and discovery. Parents in informal-settlement schools also expressed hope that their children would benefit from richer early-learning experiences. Analysts caution, however, that sustained support, ongoing refresher training and resource allocation must accompany initial workshops to avoid reversing the gains.
Looking ahead, Nairobi County plans to scale the teacher-training programme to all 17 sub-counties by mid-2026, with monthly cluster-workshop follow-ups and peer-mentoring systems in place. The county is also developing a monitoring framework to track changes in early-learning outcomes—such as children’s literacy and numeracy at Grade 1 readiness. If effectively implemented, the initiative could mark a turning point in how early-childhood education is delivered in Nairobi, laying a stronger foundation for learner success throughout the school system.