Close schools now: teachers union Parents grapple with decision to keep kids home or maintain normalcy By: Danielle Da Silva Posted: 5:20 PM CDT Monday, Mar. 16, 2020 Last Modified: 9:10 PM CDT Monday, Mar. 16, 2020 Updates

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While parents across the city debated whether to send their children to school Monday morning amid growing concern over the COVID-19 pandemic, the union representing the province’s teachers urged the Pallister government to close the facilities as soon possible.

“If the province is going to work out of an abundance of caution, there is no reason why we shouldn’t do this sooner than later,” said James Bedford, president of the Manitoba Teachers’ Society.

The union is pushing the provincial government to suspend classes no later than Wednesday. The province announced last Friday that schools would remain open this week, but then close for three weeks, a stretch that includes March spring break, as a preventative measure to prevent the spread of novel coronavirus.

Bedford said many teachers have prepared materials for students to continue their studies while school is out.

“We’re simply saying let’s not wait until we see any community-based transmission here, let’s keep consistent with that messaging of closing or suspending for an abundance of caution, and let’s do it just a little bit sooner because our members are good to go.

“We don’t need to wait to Friday; we’re getting that information to students today.”

Bedford said he’s also requesting the education minister allow teachers and staff to work from home while classes are suspended.

Leo Fernandes’ six-year-old son still took his usual seat in class Monday, but he had been briefed on proper handwashing and told to keep his distance from peers at École Laura Secord School.

Fernandes said he debated whether or not to drop his son off at the Wolseley elementary school Monday morning following the provincial government’s announcement on Friday cancelling classes from March 23 to April 10.

“You just don’t know. Kids are like little petri dishes on their own," Fernandes said. "But it’s not quite as crazy here as it is everywhere else yet, so we’ll keep their ‘normal’ as normal as possible."

The father of two said he’s arranged to stay home with his son and will pull his youngest out of daycare while classes are cancelled, and questioned why child care facilities are not currently being told to close.

“If we’re gonna shut’er down, let’s shut’er down,” he said.

“You just don’t know. Kids are like little petri dishes on their own. But it’s not quite as crazy here as it is everywhere else yet, so we’ll keep their ‘normal’ as normal as possible.”
– Leo Fernandes, parent

The move to close schools for a period of three weeks beginning Monday is in keeping with provincial public health officer Brent Roussin’s direction for social distancing. Roussin said classes are being cancelled out of an abundance of caution.

“This really is a matter of timing,” Roussin said. “Almost all of the evidence shows that closing of schools should really occur when we see either cases in schools, or when we have sustained community-based transmission.”

So far there are no COVID-19 cases in schools or transmitted locally, he said, and licensed child care facilities will remain open at this time.

Provincial officials have said the one-week delay between announcement and closing schools is to allow parents and caregivers to make arrangements for their kids to stay at home during the shutdown, and for teachers to prepare take-home materials.

“We knew that it’s likely to come and we wanted to take advantage of spring break, ideally it would be nice to give that cushion time,” Roussin said.

We are keeping our 6 year-oldhome. Doing our best to leave services to those who need them.

— Dr. Melissa Funke (@MelissaKAFunke) March 16, 2020

The majority of Canadian provinces have announced immediate school closures, though not all. Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe said on Monday that classes in that province would close indefinitely on March 20. Ontario announced last week all publicly funded schools will be closed for two weeks following spring break, from March 14 to April 5, while kindergarten to Grade 12 classes have been cancelled, and child care centres closed indefinitely, beginning this week in Alberta.

The Manitoba government may extend its school suspension if required, Roussin said.

 

School divisions have also instituted new policies ahead of next week’s closure. On Monday, Louis Riel School Division began requesting adults accompany students to bus stops and instructed bus drivers to visually assess each person to see if anyone is displaying cold- or flu-like symptoms. Meanwhile multiple school divisions have restricted visitors to their properties, and River East Transcona School Division has restricted building access to no more than 30 minutes before school starts and 30 minutes after school ends. Administrators at St. Paul’s High School have announced classes will be cancelled from March 17 until April 14.

While risk levels still remain low, some parents and guardians elected to keep their children home Monday, well ahead of the government-mandated closure.

“We’re simply saying let’s not wait until we see any community-based transmission here, let’s keep consistent with that messaging of closing or suspending for an abundance of caution, and let’s do it just a little bit sooner because our members are good to go.”
– James Bedford, president of the Manitoba Teachers’ Society

Melissa Funke said she decided over the weekend to pull her daughter from Grosvenor School this week. While she has concerns over the spread of the virus — including the risk to family members who would be vulnerable to the disease — keeping her six-year-old home was also part of her family’s effort to create breathing room in the school system.

“We thought if we could leave the resources of the school to people who might need them more, people who might be working on an hourly wage and who would need the child care, that was a better option,” Funke said. “It would also give the teachers fewer children to deal with as they’re trying to encourage social distancing, which isn’t easy for six-year-olds obviously.”

Funke said she and her husband are both able to work from home and have planned a schedule to keep their daughter up with her school work.

“We want to make this a positive experience for our daughter where she can see us modelling and addressing a challenge, coming together as a family to address that challenge, and the community coming together.”

danielle.dasilva@freepress.mb.ca