THUNDER BAY - Local students who have been learning at home for the past six weeks will be back in the classroom after the April break and it is anticipated the next academic year will look much like it used to.
The Thunder Bay District Health Unit has informed the local school boards that in-person learning can resume on April 19.
“In-person learning is vital to the overall health and wellbeing of students and I recognize that suspending this has imposed additional challenges for students and families,” said Dr. Janet DeMille, medical officer of health with the Thunder Bay District Health Unit in a statement, “While this was necessary given the impact that community cases were having on schools, it is important that this resume, of course, with all appropriate prevention measures in place to ensure the ongoing safety of students and staff in these challenging times.”
Students with the Lakehead Public School Board, the Thunder Bay Catholic District School Board, CSDC des Aurores Boreales, and Lac des Mille Lacs Education Centre have been learning at home since March 1 after surges in COVID-19 cases in the district.
Many of the cases reported involve school-age children the health unit said last month.
With cases declining the health unit has determined it is safe for students to return to the classroom.
“We are excited about that,” said Ian MacRae, director of education with the Lakehead Public School Board. “That has always been our preference and we will be able to continue to deliver appropriate learning environments to students and staff.”
MacRae said virtual options will still be available for students and families who prefer learning at home, but he anticipates the majority of students will be returning to the classroom.
“We anticipate there will be a substantial return,” he said. “Kids love to be in school, they love to be around their friends, the atmosphere, the activities that go on. The sooner we can get back to normal the better for the vast majority of students.”
Pino Tassone, director of education with the Thunder Bay Catholic District School Board, said in-person learning carries many benefits for students and teachers.
“The benefit is better programming for our kids,” he said. “The most important piece is interaction and engagement and the learning that takes place. You can’t beat in-person learning. The virtual piece does support some of our students.”
Looking ahead to the 2021/2022 academic year, school boards are preparing for a return to normal semester, with the option for quadmesters if needed.
“We are not suggesting quadmesters will be in place to start the school year. We are suggesting we will be planning for a normal return. Students will be in class with teachers in front of them,” MacRae said.
“Going forward, the way things are changing and evolving, we are hoping that will continue to be the case and with the vaccination roll out we think there is a good possibility for that.”
“We will plan for a normal year where we run two semesters but we can run quadmesters if we have to,” Tassone added.
Local teacher union and federation representatives have expressed concerns about returning to the quadmester system next year.
Rich Seeley, president of Ontario Secondary Teachers Federation District 6A said the hybrid system is far from perfect, especially for teachers because it can be very draining and doesn’t leave enough time for preparation and work outside of the classroom.
“In one quadmester you might teach one class. That’s okay, but it might be a very long class,” he said.
“In another quadmester you might be teaching two classes, which means you are teaching 150 minutes in the morning, 150 minutes in the afternoon, with a 40 minute lunch and no breaks in between and no time for planning or contacting parents.”
Carlo Cappello, unit president with the Ontario English Catholic Teachers Association, said members are hoping there will not be a return to quadmesters next year and with vaccination rollout continuing students and staff will be able to safely return to the classroom.
“We don’t like the quadmester system, our students don’t like the system. We’ve seen many students are having difficulty in that there is less time for students to complete courses or master concepts, especially in skill developing classes like math and science,” he said.
“We are tired of the entire scenario in which we find ourselves with quadmesters and having to go online and offline and having alternate weeks in class and one week virtual. But we understand it’s necessary to keep things relatively safe.”
