The NDP says parents deserve more answers about how schools will keep students safe when classrooms reopen.
On Wednesday, Education Minister Adriana LaGrange announced the government is working with school authorities to develop a comprehensive re-entry plan for September that considers three scenarios: resuming normal school operations, partially reopening schools, and continuing at-home learning.
NDP education critic Sarah Hoffman said many parents say they would not allow their children to return to school today, given what little effort government has put into protecting Alberta workers; for example, at the Cargill meat processing plant in High River, where 949 workers have tested positive for COVID-19.
“This is really scary and the government doesn’t seem to take the severity of this as a high priority. Parents don’t want to see these kinds of outbreaks happen in schools,” Hoffman said.
“When they go back, it should be done in a way that parents feel confident.”
She said classroom sizes in many schools were already too large for effective learning.
With the added risk of COVID-19, it’s even more important to make sure classrooms are not overcrowded and the right supports are in place to keep kids healthy, said Hoffman.
LaGrange did not say when the government will make its final decision.
Hoffman said Albertans should at least know when they will get the next update from Alberta Education, so parents and staff can plan their lives.
“We need to give parents a date in which we’ll let them know if schools will be open in September or not,” Hoffman said.
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Jayson Lovell, Wolf Creek Public Schools superintendent, said school jurisdictions had until last Friday to submit initial information to Alberta Education to contribute to the draft of the re-entry plan for schools.
“That re-entry plan will be open for feedback from parents, from students, from stakeholder groups, from the education system in general.
“When that does come out, we’ll make sure we communicate that out to parents and students and communities,” Lovell said.
He said Wolf Creek has already sought input from staff about the challenges they anticipate. There’s so much to consider, such as transportation, sanitizing, personal protective equipment and maintaining social distance, he said.
“Schools are hubs in our communities and we have a lot of traffic in our schools. So any thought of the re-opening of our schools has to consider all of those factors and we have to have plans in place for each of them.
“It’s just a very fluid and uncertain future when it comes to what we might anticipate. But at the same time, we need to start thinking about all those different possibilities and options and prepare as best we can.”
szielinski@reddeeradvocate.com
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