Reimagining teacher professional development in Kenya

Despite the recognised link between teacher professional development and student achievement, Kenyan teachers and other educators contend with systemic inequalities and a disconnect between training models and classroom realities. This qualitative study, grounded in Social Cognitive Theory, interrogates the lived experiences of teachers and administrators to examine how teacher professional development can be reimagined to better align with diverse teaching contexts and digital integration. Through in-depth interviews with key educational stakeholders, the research identifies a significant tension between top-down mandates and the need for localised, teacher-centred agency. Findings reveal that while digital tools offer a pathway for enhanced accessibility, their efficacy is contingent upon fostering collaborative professional frameworks rather than isolated skill acquisition. By shifting the focus from standardised training to context-responsive models, this study contributes to scholarship on teacher resilience in resource-constrained environments, offering a theoretical bridge between professional agency and systemic reform.