Parents getting mixed messages

By Bill Fox/Columnist

I was a teacher and educator for a span of 40 years.  I taught elementary school, all except grades 2 and 3, then high school, and finally I taught some classes at the University of Toronto for aspiring teachers.

All that being said, if I still had children in school, I too might be very confused about the messages I am seeing from Ontario Premier Doug Ford and Education Minister Stephen Lecce.

There is no doubt in my mind that the most precious resource we have is our children. Speak to a parent who has lost a child and you would see they would give up anything to have their child back including their jobs, etc.

So, while my four sons are now adults, I, like other parents and grandparents would love to be able to make an educated decision about whether to send children back to school. I find it hard to believe that our premier actually said, “If it were up to us we would have five kids in a classroom.” Well if it is not up to Premier Ford, who is it up to?

Things may have changed by the time this column goes to print, but as I write this, Ontario’s plan will see elementary and high school students in areas with low infection rates in class five days a week in standard class sizes. However, secondary students at boards that are higher risk will only attend class half the time. Masks will be required for students in grades four to 12. Students love to socialize so I’m sceptical about how this will work and how teachers and supervisors can possibly ensure social distancing.

However, my biggest concern is for the primary children. Just recently it was revealed more than 97,000 children in the U.S. tested positive for COVID-19 in the last two weeks of July. As Ontario’s back-to-school plans face increased scrutiny, leaders at the Hospital for Sick Children say that keeping classroom numbers low enough to enable physical distancing is key to curbing transmission of COVID-19 in schools. Therefore, thousands of parents are calling for smaller elementary class sizes.

Sick Kids President and CEO Dr. Ronald Cohn told the Toronto Star, “If you have a certain number of children in a class … and physical distancing will be compromised by the number of children in the class, then we cannot and will not support this.”

Mr. Ford keeps insisting that compared to other provinces they are putting more money into the opening of schools than anyone. Is Ford trying to distract us from our concerns?  “We won’t be distracted by comparison if we are captivated with purpose,” said Bob Goff.

“Closed, crowded, and close-contact spaces are high risk for COVID transmission – and schools meet all those criteria,” said Ashleigh Tuite, an infectious disease epidemiologist and assistant professor at the University of Toronto’s Dalla Lana School of Public Health.

From my experience, one of the best jobs in the world, and perhaps one of the most difficult is to be a primary teacher. We are lucky in our region to have some fantastic, loving acaring teachers. I have edited an Internet version of how school may start for some kindergarten students this September:

Hi! Welcome to Kindergarten! I’m your teacher, I’m so happy you are in my class! Sorry you can’t see my smile. Please don’t be frightened, please don’t cry…if I could, I would hold your hand and guide you down the hall, but I need to keep my distance. Don’t get near anyone. We need to be safe!! You’re too far away and you’re confused and all I want to do is hug you!

A spokesperson for Ontario Education Minister Stephen Lecce called the Ontario back-to-school plan “a living document” that is meant to adapt to scientific advice as it emerges. I trust that money and concern for the economy are not the priorities here.

I’m at bdfox@rogers.com relieved I don’t have the responsibility that parents, teachers, school boards and the province now face.