Province must ensure safe return to schools

Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 17/08/2020 (1494 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Last week, Education Minister Kelvin Goertzen and chief provincial public health officer Dr. Brent Roussin announced that facemasks are highly recommended, but not deemed mandatory in public schools this fall.

On the advice of Public Health, the province has taken a layered approach to contain and reduce the spread of COVID-19, rightly emphasizing the need for social distancing and the use of physical barriers. In a school setting, however, such recommendations are neither practical nor consistently possible. It is for this reason that the Manitoba Teachers’ Society advocates mandatory use of masks for all who enter public schools this fall.

While in all other public spaces the province has advised two metres of physical distance, that recommendation has been reduced to a single metre in schools (where two metres is not possible). The implication is that schools are somehow safer environments than, for example, restaurants and patios. Teachers and school leaders know all too well that this is not the case.

As the union representing some 16,000 public school educators in Manitoba, the safe, sustainable return of teachers and students to the classroom is MTS’s top priority. Consistent guidance from the province with respect to safety is an essential component of an effective school reopening. Government investment in preventive measures and adequate resources in classrooms must surely pale in comparison to the potential expense and stress resulting from inconsistent application of safety “recommendations” this fall.

In weekly meetings with department of education officials and other provincial education partners, MTS has — and will continue to — advocated in the strongest possible terms for the safety of teachers and students. Following the education minister’s press conference last week, MTS called on the province to address the following outstanding concerns, in addition to mandating the use of masks:

– a reduction in class size to permit optimal physical distancing;

– access to rapid turnaround on COVID-19 testing for teachers, in line with that of other frontline workers in health care and for professional athletes;

– a gradual return to school, whereby students return in small groups over a period of time, permitting them to re-acclimate to the classroom setting. This also allows for the early identification and resolution of unanticipated challenges before all students return. A gradual return in Manitoba could unfold over several days or weeks;

– a plan to ensure the availability of certified substitute teachers; and

– a funding commitment for increased staffing needs, recovery learning, infrastructure upgrades and ongoing safety precautions.

Last week, Premier Brian Pallister unveiled the province’s new pandemic recovery advertising campaign. Surely, if funds are available for province-wide ads heralding Manitoba’s re-opening, there are funds available to ensure the safety of our schools’ staff and students. The lack of delineated funding set aside for this purpose casts doubt on the government’s commitment to education and safety.

To state the obvious, these are uncertain times. At a press conference last week, the premier enjoined Manitobans not to live in fear. “Fear,” he stated, “is not a plan.” And he’s right.

However, the fact is that many Manitobans are indeed afraid — and courageous, too. We have responded to public health advice throughout the pandemic with vigilance, and as a result were highly successful in combating the virus’s spread this spring. We have not backed down, but we have taken care.

Our health-care workers, retail store staff, first responders and others, along with our teachers, are putting themselves on the line to support their communities. What better way for the province to allay Manitobans’ reasonable fears and support their courage than by mandating appropriate safety standards?

Given that none of us knows with certainty the precise circumstances our children, teachers and educational workers will face this fall, let us err on the side of an abundance of caution — with mandatory masks in schools, for a start.

Last week, the premier reiterated his commitment to schools and “the opportunity for all our children to be educated safely.”

Rest assured, we shall hold him to that.

James Bedford is president of the Manitoba Teachers’ Society