Teachers urged to get professional license

Ministry of Education has reminded all teachers in the country to get registered with Teachers Council of Malawi (TCM) and get a license if they are to remain in the profession.

Speaking in an interview on Friday, Spokesperson in the Ministry, Mphatso Nkuonera said registration for licensing is currently underway and come July 1, 2024 all unlicensed teachers will be barred from practicing in accordance with Education Act of 2013.

In its second board meeting held on 21st December, 2023, the Teachers Council approved guidelines of teacher indexing, registration, and licensing. The guidelines mandate all student and serving teachers to be registered with the council for them to practice.

“All institutions are therefore requested to inform all serving primary school teachers, secondary school teachers, Teacher Training College Tutors, Early Childhood Development caregivers, Guidance and Counselling Officers, and Education Administrators to register with the Council by 30th June, 2024. After this window, no teacher will be allowed to practice without registration,” reads a statement announcing resolutions made during the board meeting, adding it will be an offence to employ unregistered teachers and any institution in violation will be taken to task.

Nkuonera said to qualify for the license, one has to among others have a teaching qualification from an accredited education training institution and relevant to the category being applied for, a valid National Identification Card, not serving a jail sentence upon conviction, have a University Certificate of Education (UCE) or a Post Graduate Diploma in Teaching Methodology (PGDTM) if is a holder of non-education qualification and international candidates or Malawians with qualifications from other countries shall have their qualification validated by National Council for Higher Education (NCHE).

Taking into consideration that some schools are using teachers without education qualification, Nkuonera said the institutions are being encouraged to enroll such teachers in Post Graduate Diplomas in Teaching Methodology (PGDTM) or a University Certificate of Education (UCE) or its equivalent by 1st July, 2024.

Teacher registration fees range from K15,000 – K45,000 for Malawians and US$45-US$60 for non-Malawians depending on the level of the institution they are teaching.

For a license which will be valid for three years Malawians are paying fees ranging from K45,000 – K135,000 and non-Malawians are paying a fee range of US$15 – US$75 depending on the level of their institution.

“The teacher trainees from all accredited teacher training institutions will part ways with their K15,000 if they want to be indexed, and according to the Council the indexing of all the trainees should be done by 30th March, 2024,” Nkuonera emphasised.

He further said that the teaching license shall be renewed if an applicant has satisfied 150 credits of Continuous Professional Development (CPD) from approved list of CPDs published by the council, has not contravened Government of Malawi Teacher Code of Conduct in the previous year, is not on interdiction and is not involved in active politics.

Government established Teachers Council of Malawi in 2022 in accordance with section 57 of the Education Act of 2013 to among others register and license teachers and promote professional and ethical standards in the teaching profession.