Province considers in-class summer pilot project in dealing with COVID-19 pandemic

Thestar.com
May 19, 2020
Kristen Rushowy

The Ontario government is looking at creating an in-person summer-school pilot project in an area with a low number of COVID-19 cases, and will also boost online course offerings for students across the province in July and August, sources say.

The pilot project is among the options the province is considering as Premier Doug Ford and Education Minister Stephen Lecce prepare to make an announcement on Tuesday about whether to reopen schools before the end of June.

Lecce has been contacting counterparts in other provinces in recent days as the government debated how to handle the remainder of the school year.

The idea of the summer school pilot is to find the safest way to resume classes amid the ongoing coronavirus threat, as the provincial lockdown and shuttering of schools have taken a toll on kids and their parents. Parts of the province, such as the Kingston area, have seen low numbers of coronavirus infections and some no longer have active cases.

The summer school proposal has come up in discussions with principals, directors of education and union groups as the province grapples with how to handle the pandemic over the long term, according to insiders with knowledge of the discussions. The Star agreed not to name the sources as they were not authorized to speak publicly about the plans.

Students have been out of class since mid-March, with Lecce shutting down the province’s nearly 5,000 schools after the spring break. As of now, they are to remain closed until the end of May.

While some provinces like Alberta have opted to cancel the remainder of the school year and plan to restart in September, both British Columbia and Quebec are allowing some students to return.

Other countries have also slowly resumed classes, although a week after reopening France has reported a surge in school-related coronavirus cases.

New Democrat education critic Marit Stiles said “the No. 1 priority must be to keep our children healthy, and ensure we aren’t risking more lives.”

She said “parents and staff are telling me they are worried that government will move too quickly and not take the steps necessary to keep everyone safe -- like providing extra support for students with special needs, mental health support for students dealing with trauma, or even taking the time to properly train education workers on infection control.”

The Ford government, she added, doesn’t have “a great track record of working collaboratively with the front-line workers and that worries me. From custodians to educational assistants to teachers and principals, these are our experts. They’ll be able to anticipate issues before they arise.”

As jurisdictions around the world begin to ease up on restrictions, attendance has been voluntary and schools have implemented more stringent and frequent cleaning protocols, as well as regular handwashing and use of hand sanitizer among children. Some countries require face masks and take temperatures as students arrive. Classes have remained small, with desks two metres apart and kids forced to maintain physical distancing during lunch and recess.

In some cases, students attend for half-days or on alternate days only. In British Columbia, younger students -- up to Grade 5 -- will attend halftime, with older students in school one day a week.

“We have internally started talking about what needs to happen,” Laura Walton, who heads the Ontario school board bargaining unit of the Canadian Union of Public Employees, has said. “I see it in phases. But before schools can open, we need to get people back in and cleaning.”

The province’s associate medical officer of health has previously said that when school does restart, students and staff could be screened for illness, and those who are sick will not be allowed in the building.

In the U.S., a coalition of 16 states has created its own education recovery task force to consider what schools will look like once they can safely reopen their doors, and say their focus is not only on academics but also student mental health and well-being.

That task force has also considered keeping students with the same elementary teacher in the fall to give them a level of comfort and support.