Furious teachers storm online classroom and demand students log off: ‘biggest betrayal’

• The ongoing teachers’ strike has disrupted learning at many universities across the country, leaving students unsure of what to do next.
• One female teacher’s attempt to continue teaching her students encountered significant resistance from her colleagues.
• This forced her, despite her desire to continue teaching, to end the online class by asking students to log out.

Faith Chandianya, a journalist at TUKO.co.ke, has over three years of experience covering politics and current affairs in Kenya.

What started as a peaceful online class for university students turned into chaos when striking teachers interrupted the class.

It comes after the University Academic Staff Union (UASU) announced a new strike over unmet pay increases agreed in a September return to work agreement with the government.

What did the teacher say to the students during the online lesson?

The chaos began when the lecturer, who identified himself as Dr Maloba Wekesa, ordered all students in a scheduled online class to log off immediately.

“This is one of the biggest betrayals we have. Shame on the person who is in the classroom right now,” Wekesa said.

Another lecturer, Richard Bosire, echoed Wekesa’s remarks and asked the instructor in charge of the online class to stop the class.

Bosire urged the lecturer to wait until the strike was over before resuming classes, arguing that one lecturer could not guide students to graduation.

“Wait until we finish this strike. You can’t graduate alone. There are so many of us and we don’t want to be disrespectful. Please end this amicably so that your students can maintain the respect they have for you,” Bosire said.

The teacher conducting the online class calmly replied that she had heard the requests and asked the students to leave the session.

“I am very obliged, I am very obliged, sir. So, students, we can log out,” she said.

Why UASU called for a teachers’ strike

Earlier, UASU General Secretary Constantine Wesonga said the strike was due to the government’s alleged failure to implement the 2021-2025 Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA).

He criticized the Interstate Universities Council Consultative Forum (IPUCCF) for delaying progress since September 4, 2020, when salary proposals for the CBA were initially submitted.

Their grievances included cuts to university funding, delayed salaries, unpaid statutory and third-party contributions (such as loans, pension contributions and insurance premiums), and opposition to the newly implemented university funding model.

Source: TUKO.co.ke