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Discussion on the Reopening of Schools Teachers and Education Workers in Alberta Must Empower ThemselvesThe Alberta government announced its plans for the September return to school at a press conference on July 21. The announcement was made as COVID-19 cases are rising significantly in the province, reaching numbers of new cases daily not seen since April. Despite this trend, it was announced that in-person classes will resume at the start of the 2020-2021 school year, under what are called "near normal" conditions, with some health measures to be put in place to control the spread of COVID-19. While schools are to have contingency plans in place in case it is decided to instead have students attend half-time or exclusively online, at present the expectation is that schools will be open to all students every day.
What is absent from all these requirements and recommendations is input from the teachers and education workers who will have to implement the plan, as well as the funding needed to do so. It has become clear why the government simply stopped consulting the Alberta Teachers' Association in June -- the government clearly had no intention of addressing the concerns being raised of how the necessary measures can be implemented. To pretend that this can be done without the input of staff and the necessary funding is irresponsible in the extreme, and it is giving rise to great concern amongst teachers, parents and students. As education workers who make the schools function, teach the children, and maintain the schools, we must have a decisive say in planning return to school. The government's arbitrary pronouncements show it is refusing to put the interests of the children and youth and those who work to provide education in first place. The existing problems of large class sizes, too few educational assistants and other supports for students with special needs, and a maintenance staff cut to the bone have become even more acute under pandemic conditions. There can be no safe return to this old "normal." Life cannot return to the way it was before the pandemic. Secondly, rather than setting necessary standards, the regulations afford wide discretion. For example, they require that the number of students per bench on school buses should be limited "where feasible." In other words, so long as bus companies, which are private enterprises, claim it is not feasible to operate more buses with fewer students, they may continue with business as usual. While it is stated that drivers should have some sort of protection, there is no guidance on what that should be. As well, schools can consider staggering start and end times along with class changes, but again, there are no specifics.
In explaining the decision to resume "near normal" classes, Premier Jason Kenney and Minister of Education Adriana LaGrange pointed to examples from other parts of Canada and the world where schools have been opened, as well as the experience of summer school classes in Alberta. But none of the examples are comparable. In BC, one of the places specifically mentioned, students in Kindergarten to Grade 5 were able to attend 50 per cent of the time and Grades 6 to 12 were able to attend 20 per cent of the time. Attendance was voluntary and many students continued to stay home. In Denmark, another example cited by the Premier, classes were divided in half to allow for physical distancing and entry times were staggered, neither of which are required by Alberta's plan. Summer school courses that have taken place in Alberta this month are subject to class size limits of no more than 15 students. When asked how classes of less than 15 can provide evidence of the safety of a full return in September, the Minister of Education was unable to provide a coherent answer. How to guarantee the right to education within the context of a global pandemic is a serious question. The closure of schools in mid-March has had a negative impact on students in terms of lost academic learning, and also a lack of opportunities for socialization and supports normally provided by schools for the most vulnerable students. The public education system in a modern society plays a role not just in educating students, but also in looking after their overall well-being, as well as allowing parents to go to work. Teachers are well aware that for many students, online learning has been far from adequate to meet their needs.
Teachers, education workers, parents and students are responding by affirming their support for public education. The Alberta Teachers' Association has enlisted an infectious disease specialist to assist members in understanding the latest science on COVID-19 and hosted a town hall on July 29. In some schools, teachers are establishing staff committees to sort out how the return to work can be as safe as possible. The fact that the Kenney government is unfit to govern is plain for all to see. It is up to us to build the alternative! Teachers, education workers, students and parents should go all out to develop discussion in and amongst schools and in neighbourhoods. Together we can get our bearings and find a way forward. Note1. The Alberta government guidelines can be found here.
This article was published in Article Link:   Website: www.cpcml.ca Email: editor@cpcml.ca |
The government's
guidelines for school re-entry include both requirements for school
boards, and recommendations which are optional. Students and staff must
perform hand hygiene (either washing or sanitizing) when entering and
exiting the school and when entering each classroom. Schools must have
procedures for increased cleaning of high-contact surfaces. Students
and staff must check themselves for symptoms of COVID-19 and stay home
if they have any. Rules exist around the consumption of food,
procedures exist for when students become ill at school, and so on.[
Of concern to
many is the fact that there are no requirements for physical
distancing. Two metres is recommended, but where this is "not possible
between desks the greatest possible spacing, is recommended." In this
way, the reality of class sizes, which have been unacceptably large for
years, is dismissed. In the vast majority of schools in Alberta,
students will be nowhere near two metres apart. While not the norm,
there are classrooms in Alberta where there is not room for each
student to have a desk, yet the Premier speaks about "social distancing
where possible." There are no limits on class sizes in Alberta and at a
press conference following the announcement on school reopening, it was
confirmed that this would remain the case.
By announcing
that students will return to school in September without the active
participation of teachers, educational assistants, custodial and
maintenance staff in sorting out how this can be done safely, the
Kenney government is declaring a return to business as usual. The
decision comes from on high, and schools are supposed to just "make it
work." If they cannot, it is evidence of the failure of public
institutions and a pretext to place more of public education under the
control of private interests. The government acknowledges there will be
cases of COVID-19 in schools as a result of this approach. The
immediate reaction of many parents is to weigh the risks and benefits
of sending their children to school and make an individual decision.
This suits Kenney just fine -- "choice" in education is one of the key
pieces of the United Conservative Party agenda.