Education and child care during the COVID-19 pandemic will look very different

Students may be allowed back into schools in small numbers in the weeks and months ahead, but full-scale classroom instruction will remain suspended, according to a bulletin from the Ministry of Education

Education and school-based child care during the COVID-19 pandemic will look very different for the foreseeable future.

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As part of a plan to ensure that service and support is available to essential service workers only, “a limited number of students will be present in-person in schools at any given time to allow for sufficient physical distancing,” it says.

The ministry is working with the provincial health officer and the B.C. Public School Employers’ Association on hygiene practices “to ensure the health and safety of staff and/or students who are present in schools now, and in the weeks ahead.”

Districts are considering a variety of online and traditional paper-and-pen learning systems, depending on whether families have computers or tablets and internet access. Many will adapt materials already in use by parents who home-school their children.

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“We have been working behind the scenes in order to prepare for what will be a fundamentally different delivery of education to our students,” said Suzanne Hoffman, superintendent of the Vancouver School District.

Those preparations follow some guiding principles: Health and safety of staff and students; quick, clear communication; and connecting meaningfully with students to build a sense of community.

Teachers will check in with families starting next week to ask about their needs and take feedback on next steps, she said in a video message.

Photo by Francis Georgian / PNG files

“Connections will be re-established so that families know that schools can continue to provide support and be a hub of all things that matter most to families in this time of uncertainty,” she said.

Education Minister Rob Fleming asked that parents consult the ministry’s COVID-19 web page for “trusted” information about continuity of learning during the crisis, in a tweet on Wednesday evening.

The provincial health officer’s ban on gatherings of more than 50 people will not apply to public and independent schools, provided that students and staff are not all in one place at one time and are “actively engaged in physical distancing to the extent possible.”

Day-care facilities located in schools may also remain open for now.

School districts have been working to tailor online and distance-education tools to their students and those will be in place “no later than mid-April,” the bulletin says. Districts will be asking families about their access to technology at home to inform that process.

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“Some school districts and independent schools are considering loaning equipment for students and potential in-person learning options … to ensure all students have the tools they need to learn away from a school building,” it says.

Alternatives to in-person instruction “may look slightly different depending on the students and families that these schools serve.”

A website will be launched Friday with instructions for parents about ways to support their children’s studies at home.

“Some support from parents will likely be required, especially for younger children who may require explanations and guidance on how to approach home-learning activities,” the bulletin says.

Photo by Arlen Redekop / PNG

The time commitment required from parents will vary with the age of the student and the approach taken by individual teachers. Most B.C. teachers will return to work Monday to fine-tune their plans for distance education and determine what, if any, instruction will take place in person.

Parents remain apprehensive about the notion of sending their children back to school, even in small numbers.

“Too many parents don’t show good judgment about sending their kids to school while sick,” said Nicole Geha. “I hope they introduce protocols around disinfecting the playground, communal pens, pencils, and all the desks and chairs frequently.”

“Our children will not be returning to school,” said Natalie Gilchrist. “It’s not worth the risk. With technology today, we are able to provide schooling at home.

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“Just because people congregate in smaller numbers does not guarantee that they don’t have the virus.”

School districts are also working out how to support students with disabilities and special needs, including on-site physical therapy and occupational therapy where feasible.

School-based teams are to develop plans for students who were receiving one-to-one assistance in consultation with families, but few details are available.

“I am trying to figure out if the teachers go onto online instruction, how is my daughter going to access her learning support worker then?” asked parent Angie Alemu, whose child has an existing medical condition. “The school cannot provide me an answer to that question.”

Major universities are expecting to admit B.C. graduates as usual, based on grades supplied by the ministry.

“The majority of our conditional admission offers are made by the end of April and we do not see this timeline being impacted by COVID-19 at this time,” said a spokesman for Simon Fraser University.