Some significant changes are coming next week for students in the province’s K-12 system, but up until next Thursday, the current system remains in place.
As of next Thursday, most high school students in the province will move back to exclusively online learning, while those in K-9 will resume in-class instruction.
Teachers are being given two days to prepare for the transition: next Tuesday and Wednesday, as Monday is a holiday.
The CEO of the Newfoundland and Labrador English School District, Tony Stack, says those days will be used as transition days for teachers.
K-9 teachers on the Avalon will be preparing for a return to the classroom, but online learning is expected to continue during those days.
Stack cautions that while teachers are preparing, instruction may not be as “robust,” but it will still go ahead.
NLTA President Dean Ingram is pleased to hear that teachers will be afforded some time to make that transition. He urges patience among parents and students as teachers take the time to make the needed adjustments.
The NLTA maintains that safety has to be the primary concern, and while the union is pleased that high school students are reverting to online instruction, concerns remain about the reliance on cohorting for in-class instruction in the lower grades.
Students and staff at Mount Pearl Senior High were among the hundreds of people affected in the most recent outbreak in the province.
Ingram says cohorting presents continued challenges with respect to lack of physical distancing and poor ventilation. He says if you want to protect the community, you need to protect schools.