Students return to school again

By Sean Feagan, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Students are returning to the classroom after spending the last two weeks (or more) learning from home as part of increased COVID-19 public health measures.

The move to at-home learning started on May 7 for kindergarten to Grade 12 students because of a high number of COVID-19 cases in the province. The move was said to be temporary for two weeks, and with cases now declining, this has held true, with students returning to in-person classes on May 25.

Superintendents Bevan Daverne and Scott Morrison from Golden Hills School Division (GHSD) and Christ The Redeemer Catholic Schools, respectively, said both parents and students are looking forward to the return to the classroom.

“We’ve heard relief from many parents that they can return to work and get their lives back to normal,” said Daverne.

Neither school division was part of the decision process to return to in-person learning. However, some local schools had temporarily moved to at-home learning prior to the order because of COVID-19 outbreaks that challenged from an operational standpoint because many staff and students were affected.

But now enough time has passed for these cases to subside.

“We have no reasons to believe there will be any challenges for us moving forward operationally,” said Daverne.

The primary concern of parents and teachers is having to experience another isolation event, said Morrison. But because the isolation period has been reduced from 14 to 10 days, it will now be slightly less of a burden if exposures happen.

Dr. Deena Hinshaw, Alberta’s chief medical officer, said in a news conference on May 18 that schools have not been a major driver of transmission of COVID-19. This has been the experience of GHSD as well, said Daverne.

Morrison commended area teachers who have rolled with the punches throughout the pandemic, with many simultaneously teaching kids in the classroom and those learning remotely.

“We just think they’ve been unbelievably constructive with how they’ve approached this with a ‘can-do’ attitude,” he said.

Schools will return to how they have been operating before the shutdown. Several principals are holding refreshers on the health protocols to remind students of the approaches to limit the potential spread of the virus, said Morrison.