Individual school boards will have the power to decide what the 2020-2021 school year will look like.
However, Minister of Education Stephen Lecce says they will have to pick one option including a modified school day routine that asks students remain in contact with their classmates and one teacher throughout the day.
Lecce says other available options include a return to regular learning with strict health standards in place or the continuation of remote learning.
He stresses school Boards should have a plan in place for all three scenarios.
Boards will be asked to plan for the following three scenarios to be implemented in September, depending on the public health situation at the time:
- Normal school day routine with enhanced public health protocols – Students going to school every day, in classes that reflect standard class size regulations.
- Modified school day routine – Based on public health advice, an adapted delivery model has been designed to allow for physical distancing and cohorts of students. Under this model, school boards are asked to maintain a limit of 15 students in a typical classroom at one time and adopt timetabling that would allow for students to remain in contact only with their classmates and a single teacher for as much of the school day as possible. This model would require alternate day or alternate week delivery to a segment of the class at one time.
- At home learning – Should the school closure be extended, or some parents choose not to send their child back to school, school boards need to be prepared to offer remote education. Remote education should be delivered online to the greatest extent possible, including the establishment of minimum expectations for students to have direct contact with their teacher at the same time on a regular basis, also known as synchronous learning. Synchronous learning can be used as part of whole class instruction, in smaller groups of students, and/or in a one-on-one context.
