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Brandon School Division re-opening plan, Part 2

Brandon School Division re-opening plan, Part 2

Leonidas
Joined: Oct 2011
Posts: 143

Leonidas
Joined: Oct 2011
Posts: 143

Confusion
8/29/2020 at 12:49 PM

With Covid in the state of flux it is in , changing to yellow would seem to be a big mistake. Constantly changing from one level of protection to another will, as is evident by the comments from Teachers, lead to more confusion and ultimately, a possible increase in spread. Much better to stay at Orange and keep it there. Safer for everýone concerned. Common sense sadly lacking in Senior Management it would seem .
Adam

Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 15663

Adam
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 15663

Schools
9/1/2020 at 1:42 PM

I see many BSD schools have been connecting with parents/students on re-opening plans. Lots of re-tweets of school plans on the division Twitter feed at:
https://twitter.com/BrandonMBSD
Also of note, the division sent this out yesterday re updates to transportation:
https://www.bsd.ca/Studentsparents/Transportation/Pages/default.aspx

... and this bit from today's provincial media bulletin will effect some:
"As students prepare to return to school, masks will be required on all school buses as passengers may be in close proximity for extended periods of time with no ability to physically distance from each other. This is a change from the previous requirement which only applied to Grade 4 and above. The new rule includes drivers, students and any other passengers on the bus. "
Link:
https://news.gov.mb.ca/news/?archive=&item=49161
Jellybean
Joined: May 2010
Posts: 1378

Jellybean
Joined: May 2010
Posts: 1378

.....
9/1/2020 at 2:11 PM

I would be curious to know, since the school division says their plans are fluid, what the scenario will have to be before remote learning becomes our reality again.
Seven patients with covid in our hospital already, three of which were acquired from within the hospital. It will be hard to contain that now, and yet they are still going ahead with opening schools at full capacity. Makes me wonder if schools will even bother to offer remote learning even if an outbreak happens at a school or if we are just going to have to ride this out now and let it run it’s course no matter the consequence.
Brandonite77
Joined: Nov 2013
Posts: 85

Brandonite77
Joined: Nov 2013
Posts: 85

I agree..
9/1/2020 at 2:51 PM

Jellybean said "I would be curious to know, since the school division says their plans are fluid, what the scenario will have to be before remote learning becomes our reality again.
Seven patients with covid in our hospital already, three of which were acquired from within the hospital. It will be hard to contain that now, and yet they are still going ahead with opening schools at full capacity. Makes me wonder if schools will even bother to offer remote learning even if an outbreak happens at a school or if we are just going to have to ride this out now and let it run it’s course no matter the consequence. "
With their lack of sensitively and concern, makes me question their motives on their decision to continue full force with 1 option only. In school class, full blast ahead! I know we need to live with it, I know that we can't have what happened in March happen again.. and I certainly know I wouldn't be able to deal with this responsibility, but it does make me think twice on what we are being told.

Should I worry as much as I am, do I take this as seriously... because you don't seem to be taking this very seriously... and that shows greatly when you limit and force people to do things they are only being told to worry about! A lot of mixed emotions over here, and I don't know if it's because their all just too lazy to actually have a back up plan again or what but remote learning would solve so much for Manitoba families.

Edited by Brandonite77, 2020-09-01 14:53:56
Bran
Joined: Nov 2012
Posts: 248

Bran
Joined: Nov 2012
Posts: 248

Visits from those in charge of education plans
9/1/2020 at 3:01 PM

I would hope the school division officials, education and health ministers and premiers visit the schools, even come to Brandon and area schools and sit in for full days with 1 meters or less social distance to experience the current proposed school plans in place.
AndreaD.
Joined: Dec 2011
Posts: 797

AndreaD.
Joined: Dec 2011
Posts: 797

Schools can do it.
9/1/2020 at 4:34 PM

Schools can do it. If Maple Leaf, with a workforce of 1400 can do it with zero cases of Covid being caught at work, then schools can do it too. That isn't to say there will not be cases. There will. But the schools can take tips from Maple Leaf and learn how to curb/minimize the spread at school. What students do outside of school is something the schools have no control over. Just like outside of work, Maple Leaf has no control over what their staff does.
But I do have faith that the schools will do everything they can to ensure the safety of their students and staff.
Giddyup
Joined: Apr 2013
Posts: 473

Giddyup
Joined: Apr 2013
Posts: 473

AndreaD
9/1/2020 at 4:58 PM

I’m not sure that comparing schools with children as young as 5 to a workplace of adults is a fair or accurate comparison. Schools and classrooms are congested, poorly ventilated and are filled with KIDS... Active, social KIDS... not adults in a work environment.
theeagle
Joined: Jul 2011
Posts: 411

theeagle
Joined: Jul 2011
Posts: 411

Money
9/1/2020 at 5:23 PM

AndreaD. said "Schools can do it. If Maple Leaf, with a workforce of 1400 can do it with zero cases of Covid being caught at work, then schools can do it too. That isn't to say there will not be cases. There will. But the schools can take tips from Maple Leaf and learn how to curb/minimize the spread at school. What students do outside of school is something the schools have no control over. Just like outside of work, Maple Leaf has no control over what their staff does.
But I do have faith that the schools will do everything they can to ensure the safety of their students and staff. "
Maple Leaf spent a pretty penny on protection for it's workers. Schools have no money for anything, except masks and possible face shields (shields for the teacher only). Not the schools fault, they can only spend what they have. The province is being cheap on this, despite getting millions from the feds.
Bran
Joined: Nov 2012
Posts: 248

Bran
Joined: Nov 2012
Posts: 248

Not a great comparison
9/1/2020 at 7:53 PM

AndreaD. said "Schools can do it. If Maple Leaf, with a workforce of 1400 can do it with zero cases of Covid being caught at work, then schools can do it too. That isn't to say there will not be cases. There will. But the schools can take tips from Maple Leaf and learn how to curb/minimize the spread at school. What students do outside of school is something the schools have no control over. Just like outside of work, Maple Leaf has no control over what their staff does.
But I do have faith that the schools will do everything they can to ensure the safety of their students and staff. "
Kids and adults for starters. In completely different environments and situations.
Jellybean
Joined: May 2010
Posts: 1378

Jellybean
Joined: May 2010
Posts: 1378

.....
9/1/2020 at 8:10 PM

AndreaD. said "Schools can do it. If Maple Leaf, with a workforce of 1400 can do it with zero cases of Covid being caught at work, then schools can do it too. That isn't to say there will not be cases. There will. But the schools can take tips from Maple Leaf and learn how to curb/minimize the spread at school. What students do outside of school is something the schools have no control over. Just like outside of work, Maple Leaf has no control over what their staff does.
But I do have faith that the schools will do everything they can to ensure the safety of their students and staff. "
Not a good comparison. If you want to compare something closer to a place full of children, look at nursing homes or hospitals. These places have PPE and extreme cleaning protocols as well, but you cannot change the nature of interactions and daily activities, like eating meals, close contact, etc., that much more easily spread germs.
And what we are seeing is outbreaks in nursing homes and hospitals. And we have seen the evidence in other jurisdictions that have already returned to school that it’s spreading uncontrollably within a couple of weeks, even a couple of days.
We had the benefit of seeing what other countries went through earlier this year and got on top of it before it got out of control here. So why not do the same now. Fully returning to some of these things is not working, so why are we going to even try it here. It seems so irresponsible.
Adam

Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 15663

Adam
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Posts: 15663

Education Minister
9/2/2020 at 8:35 AM

Education Minister is scheduled to give a 12:15 today on the topic of Restoring Safe Schools. Not clear if it will be streamed but if it is the MB Gov YouTube would be the place.
Before that at 11:30 a "Manitoba Education Official" will hold a technical briefing on the Restoring Safe Schools topic.
At the very least watch for coverage in the media and I assume a media release from the Province.
Will be interesting to see if it's a broad brushstrokes Manitoba-wide announce or if it's specific to current state in Brandon and what it means for start of school here.
Abbysmum
Joined: Mar 2009
Posts: 5038

Abbysmum
Joined: Mar 2009
Posts: 5038

changes
9/2/2020 at 8:55 AM

Adam said "
Education Minister is scheduled to give a 12:15 today on the topic of Restoring Safe Schools. Not clear if it will be streamed but if it is the MB Gov YouTube would be the place.
Before that at 11:30 a "Manitoba Education Official" will hold a technical briefing on the Restoring Safe Schools topic.
At the very least watch for coverage in the media and I assume a media release from the Province.
Will be interesting to see if it's a broad brushstrokes Manitoba-wide announce or if it's specific to current state in Brandon and what it means for start of school here.
"
If I had to guess, there's going to be adjustments to the plan for PMH. I noticed Dr. Roussin changed his answer on Monday at the presser when asked about delaying school, and specifically in Brandon. He tends to answer questions remarkably consistently - same wording etc he's very careful with messaging, but he deviated that time. That has pretty much universally signaled that something was about to change.
Never_give_up
Joined: Apr 2010
Posts: 362

Never_give_up
Joined: Apr 2010
Posts: 362

Question
9/2/2020 at 10:47 AM

To be completely transparent I will disclose upfront that I do not have school aged children as of yet. In saying that, I feel for every school aged parent that has to make a decision on what the correct thing to do for their family is.

I do however have a question. Many people are asking for an online option. How would parents who work full time be able to take advantage of that, and what would they do with their children while they are at work? How would take on the responsibility of ensuring they logged in and got their school work done? Day cares can't be responsible for that. Further, I can't imagine a situation where we should expect a teacher to teach both ways (for the record I am not a teacher.)

It feels like there is no win-win situation for anyone except families that have a stay at home parent. They truly are the only ones that have a choice. They can register to home school and do that or they can send their children to school.
Adam

Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 15663

Adam
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Posts: 15663

Information
9/2/2020 at 11:25 AM

Province provides information package (link below). I’ll start by suspecting that this is the subject of the 11:30 briefing and not necessarily what minister will speak to at 12:15?
https://news.gov.mb.ca/news/?archive=&item=49163
Adam

Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 15663

Adam
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Posts: 15663

Stream
9/2/2020 at 11:50 AM

Does look like they're getting ready to stream the 12:15...
https://manitoba.ca/covid19/updates/media.html
Jellybean
Joined: May 2010
Posts: 1378

Jellybean
Joined: May 2010
Posts: 1378

.....
9/2/2020 at 12:28 PM

Never_give_up said "To be completely transparent I will disclose upfront that I do not have school aged children as of yet. In saying that, I feel for every school aged parent that has to make a decision on what the correct thing to do for their family is.

I do however have a question. Many people are asking for an online option. How would parents who work full time be able to take advantage of that, and what would they do with their children while they are at work? How would take on the responsibility of ensuring they logged in and got their school work done? Day cares can't be responsible for that. Further, I can't imagine a situation where we should expect a teacher to teach both ways (for the record I am not a teacher.)

It feels like there is no win-win situation for anyone except families that have a stay at home parent. They truly are the only ones that have a choice. They can register to home school and do that or they can send their children to school. "
There are plenty of families with one stay at home parent or with a work schedule that does provide the flexibility to accommodate remote learning. This would reduce the amount of kids in the schools and allow for a safer place for those families who do not have the choice to accommodate remote learning.
And as for teachers accommodating both in class and remote learning, I am not a teacher, but clearly other provinces and countries are doing it, so there must be a way.
The fact is is that education has never been a priority in this province. Our government is constantly failing our kids and teachers. It’s sad.
Adam

Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 15663

Adam
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Posts: 15663

Minister
9/2/2020 at 12:59 PM

Minister basically talked about the document noted above.
Essentially they see people are feeling anxious, request that they use the long weekend to read the document to help with those feelings and concerns.
Direct link is https://www.edu.gov.mb.ca/k12/covid/index.html
I'd be curious to hear folks' opinions on the document.

In questions after Minister's remarks, the topic of remote learning came up.. specifically why it's not an option for everyone. Minister emphasized that he believes the best place for a child to learn is in the classroom and that based on advice they're getting from public health the plan is a safe way for students to return to school. Unless I missed it there was no real drilling down into Brandon being treated as any different of an environment than the rest of the province and there was no indication of any imminent change from the 'yellow' status that Brandon is in.

He also stated that teachers have told him that its difficult to do the dual track of teaching remote and in-class, though unless I missed it there was no comment regarding potentially using new funding to allow divisions facilitate as BC has done.

Question was asked that if one chooses homeschooling, is there an option to return to the public school system? Minister stated that the school division in catchment area has to provide ability to come back into the system, citing scenarios that could change within a family that could necessitate.
Adam

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Posts: 15663

Adam
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Posts: 15663

Survey
9/3/2020 at 5:52 PM

Survey just sent out by BSD asking parents to inform on their intent as to whether student will be:
-attending in-class
-opting for homeschooling
-opting for remote learning with medical eligibility
-more time required

Notable in the third remote option is that they appear to also be accounting for students who have “family members that have Covid-related medical factors and have been medically advised that the student should not return to in-class learning.” Parents who got the survey will obviously want to read the whole thing and know what they're answering but I know the survey will be of interest to a lot of parents and thought it should be brought up in here.
quen223
Joined: Feb 2011
Posts: 11

quen223
Joined: Feb 2011
Posts: 11

..
9/3/2020 at 7:53 PM

Each to their own. If you feel like sending your child is not an option that is fine, but don't expect teachers to teach your child from distance and a class full of children at the same time? That would nearly be impossible as teachers are having so much time already taken out of their day for their own class prep time.

It really seems that there is so many ungrateful and unappreciative people out there. If only you could see how much time and effort that has gone into each of the schools plan.

Is it perfect? Probably not, but a huge effort was made.

Feel free to home school. I will say, it seems there's alot more people complaining on Ebrandon about wanting their kids to stay home, but yet some how classes are still full? So please stop complaining and just keep your kids home for homeschool if that's how you feel.
But if you are sending them anyways, I would think you don't have a place to criticize the hard work of faculty staff and teachers.

And by all means if you feel you could make a better return to school plan with every protocol in place and following every guide line, then please do this, and share it with the schools.
Adam

Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 15663

Adam
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Posts: 15663

Survey
9/3/2020 at 8:15 PM

Revised survey sent out this evening... wording sharpened on the second point under remote learning:
"Students are eligible who have family members in the same household that have Covid-related medical factors and have been medically advised that the student should not return to in-class learning"
Adam

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Posts: 15663

Adam
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Posts: 15663

Remote
9/3/2020 at 8:21 PM

quen223 said "Each to their own. If you feel like sending your child is not an option that is fine, but don't expect teachers to teach your child from distance and a class full of children at the same time? That would nearly be impossible as teachers are having so much time already taken out of their day for their own class prep time.

It really seems that there is so many ungrateful and unappreciative people out there. If only you could see how much time and effort that has gone into each of the schools plan.

Is it perfect? Probably not, but a huge effort was made.

Feel free to home school. I will say, it seems there's alot more people complaining on Ebrandon about wanting their kids to stay home, but yet some how classes are still full? So please stop complaining and just keep your kids home for homeschool if that's how you feel.
But if you are sending them anyways, I would think you don't have a place to criticize the hard work of faculty staff and teachers.

And by all means if you feel you could make a better return to school plan with every protocol in place and following every guide line, then please do this, and share it with the schools. "
Nobody is saying the same teacher should be teaching remote students and in-class students, thats a bit of a myth that seemed to have gotten more legs out of the Ed Minister's remarks on Wednesday. In fact via the survey BSD just sent out, if a student qualifies for remote learning via the medical exemption for student or household family member "Students are registered at a school but will be part of a divisional class and not part of a school based class."
I'd start with the guess that this same system would simply be extended if the resources were allowed to do so.
I've personally seen next to no criticism of faculty or teachers who are being the pros that they are and making the best of the unfortunate reality. I think most folks get that... but if you have come across anything on here where someone is blaming teachers please feel free to set them straight if someone else hasn't already done so! The lack of choice in Manitoba comparable to BC, Ontario, Alberta and parts of Saskatchewan comes down to a decision at the Province level and the division will only be able to work within that.

Remote learning and homeschooling are not one and the same. One involves severing tie with the school and division and covering expenses out of pocket, another involves keeping the tie with the school and division, ensuring that education is on a track that allows for easiest possible re-integration when the time feels right and a level of school support that allows a work-at-home parent (or grandparent) to more easily do their part of the educating and balance with other responsibilities. Options along these lines are available all over the place in Ontario, BC, Alberta, parts of Sask and I still havent seen anyone give a good explanation why Manitobans and our public health environment (and specifically Brandon and the outbreak we've been going through) are any different.
Jellybean
Joined: May 2010
Posts: 1378

Jellybean
Joined: May 2010
Posts: 1378

....
9/3/2020 at 8:29 PM

quen223 said "Each to their own. If you feel like sending your child is not an option that is fine, but don't expect teachers to teach your child from distance and a class full of children at the same time? That would nearly be impossible as teachers are having so much time already taken out of their day for their own class prep time.

It really seems that there is so many ungrateful and unappreciative people out there. If only you could see how much time and effort that has gone into each of the schools plan.

Is it perfect? Probably not, but a huge effort was made.

Feel free to home school. I will say, it seems there's alot more people complaining on Ebrandon about wanting their kids to stay home, but yet some how classes are still full? So please stop complaining and just keep your kids home for homeschool if that's how you feel.
But if you are sending them anyways, I would think you don't have a place to criticize the hard work of faculty staff and teachers.

And by all means if you feel you could make a better return to school plan with every protocol in place and following every guide line, then please do this, and share it with the schools. "
Where are you seeing people blame the teachers? It’s the government who forces our education system into these decisions. If other provinces can provide both in class and remote learning, why can’t Manitoba? It has nothing to do with the teachers. They are perfectly capable of making this work if they are given the resources to do so.
Before you speak, you need to understand many different scenarios. Choosing to homeschool is a huge decision. As a parent you would also then be organizing and planning all school work to be done. And you don’t get paid for any of it. A teacher would be doing this planning for you in a remote learning option. And they get paid to do so. You also have access to resources from within the school still if you need them. It can be very expensive to homeschool if you don’t have the proper technology, etc. in your home already. And what about a child with special needs who has government funding in the public school system. You don’t get that with homeschooling.
It’s really not as simple as you think. The province needs to step up and make education a priority so that our kids can be educated in a safe manner. They are not. Teachers are just doing their best with what they have.
Your Majesty
Joined: Oct 2008
Posts: 205

Your Majesty
Joined: Oct 2008
Posts: 205

Remote Learning
9/3/2020 at 8:42 PM

I can appreciate the desire to have remote learning considering other provinces are offering that option. However, for parents that are not comfortable with sending kids back to school, they can opt to do the homeschooling option. For all the parents wanting remote learning, why is the homeschooling option not good enough? What advantage does remote learning provide over homeschooling? Perhaps if folks understand these differences we can all be better informed.
Jellybean
Joined: May 2010
Posts: 1378

Jellybean
Joined: May 2010
Posts: 1378

....
9/3/2020 at 9:01 PM

Your Majesty said "I can appreciate the desire to have remote learning considering other provinces are offering that option. However, for parents that are not comfortable with sending kids back to school, they can opt to do the homeschooling option. For all the parents wanting remote learning, why is the homeschooling option not good enough? What advantage does remote learning provide over homeschooling? Perhaps if folks understand these differences we can all be better informed. "
Reasons why remote learning is a better option for some:
1. Cost: all in parents for homeschooling. Free for parents with remote learning, and teachers are still getting paid to do the prep work.
2. Access to resources: again, all resources will have to be self provided. With remote learning, you still have the benefits of resources in the school.
3. Funding: children with special needs get no government funding or programming if homeschooled. Remote learning would still allow them to have their funding and access to specialty programming.
4. Flexibility: a homeschool family essentially requires there to be one parent at home all the time. The parents would basically have a full time job planning and education the children. With remote learning, the planning is already done by the teacher, so it’s a matter of completion the work with the kids each day. This can still allow some time for more flexibility if both parents do need to still work at least part time.
5. Kids can be more easily integrated back into their classroom once safe to do so if they are already following the same lesson plan as the class.
hockeydad
Joined: Mar 2012
Posts: 17

hockeydad
Joined: Mar 2012
Posts: 17

Very impressed
9/3/2020 at 9:03 PM

We went to the school today for the open house and to drop off supplies. We were very impressed with what has been done to keep everyone as safe as possible and provide the kids with an education and a social life again. It was very easy to tell how excited all the teachers and staff were to see the kids walk in the door. Even with the masks on we could see the smiles. I applaud all the school staff and teachers for all of their thought and hard work. Looking forward to the kids getting back to normal and enjoying themselves again.
Jellybean
Joined: May 2010
Posts: 1378

Jellybean
Joined: May 2010
Posts: 1378

........
9/3/2020 at 9:10 PM

hockeydad said "We went to the school today for the open house and to drop off supplies. We were very impressed with what has been done to keep everyone as safe as possible and provide the kids with an education and a social life again. It was very easy to tell how excited all the teachers and staff were to see the kids walk in the door. Even with the masks on we could see the smiles. I applaud all the school staff and teachers for all of their thought and hard work. Looking forward to the kids getting back to normal and enjoying themselves again. "
I can echo this statement as well. The schools truly have done a wonderful job. I can’t imagine how much fear is behind all of those smiles on the teachers faces. They are in a difficult position and are still standing there with a smile welcoming our kids back!
Adam

Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 15663

Adam
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Posts: 15663

Schools
9/4/2020 at 7:27 AM

hockeydad said "We went to the school today for the open house and to drop off supplies. We were very impressed with what has been done to keep everyone as safe as possible and provide the kids with an education and a social life again. It was very easy to tell how excited all the teachers and staff were to see the kids walk in the door. Even with the masks on we could see the smiles. I applaud all the school staff and teachers for all of their thought and hard work. Looking forward to the kids getting back to normal and enjoying themselves again. "
This is great to hear... on the continuum of parents that have this level of excitement to parents that will be sending because their work and life situation allows no other choice to those of us not sending everyone wants an environment that will make best possible effort to reduce the spread that will take place in schools and the community.

Just imagine how much more minimized it could be if the province like Alberta redirected the new Federal school Covid dollars it has sitting there to school divisions and the division put some of that money into expanding the remote learning system it has in place. More hired staff for remote learning means less kids by choice within school walls means more distancing means less spread. In Toronto 60,000 out of 250,000 have chosen remote learning. In Ottawa 26.9% of elementary students. Given proper notice and same option I've seen no reason not to assume it would be in that 1/4 area here too. Also a win-win-win.
Abbysmum
Joined: Mar 2009
Posts: 5038

Abbysmum
Joined: Mar 2009
Posts: 5038

except it's not happening
9/4/2020 at 7:56 AM

Adam said "
This is great to hear... on the continuum of parents that have this level of excitement to parents that will be sending because their work and life situation allows no other choice to those of us not sending everyone wants an environment that will make best possible effort to reduce the spread that will take place in schools and the community.

Just imagine how much more minimized it could be if the province like Alberta redirected the new Federal school Covid dollars it has sitting there to school divisions and the division put some of that money into expanding the remote learning system it has in place. More hired staff for remote learning means less kids by choice within school walls means more distancing means less spread. In Toronto 60,000 out of 250,000 have chosen remote learning. In Ottawa 26.9% of elementary students. Given proper notice and same option I've seen no reason not to assume it would be in that 1/4 area here too. Also a win-win-win.
"
It's nice to think, "Oh, I'll do remote learning/homeschooling and that will leave room for more kids in the classroom", but that's not what's actually happening. The province in Ontario wants the school boards to compress the classrooms together so there's the same number of kids anyway, just less classes. The Toronto School Board wants to have smaller classes, especially in harder-hit or at-risk neighbourhoods (as there are clear demographic trends there). It's been a lot of back-and-forth trying to figure it out.
Adam

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Posts: 15663

Adam
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Posts: 15663

More spread out
9/4/2020 at 8:05 AM

Abbysmum said "It's nice to think, "Oh, I'll do remote learning/homeschooling and that will leave room for more kids in the classroom", but that's not what's actually happening. The province in Ontario wants the school boards to compress the classrooms together so there's the same number of kids anyway, just less classes. The Toronto School Board wants to have smaller classes, especially in harder-hit or at-risk neighbourhoods (as there are clear demographic trends there). It's been a lot of back-and-forth trying to figure it out. "
All hypothetical I guess, but going by the fact that it was looking like “orange” schools would be going remote for high school in order to allow use of high school space to spread out K-8s it seems this Province does respect some form of connection between number of kids in same building and spread... though I don't think I saw how exactly the high school space would be used.
hockeydad
Joined: Mar 2012
Posts: 17

hockeydad
Joined: Mar 2012
Posts: 17

Should be a choice
9/4/2020 at 9:20 AM

Adam said "
This is great to hear... on the continuum of parents that have this level of excitement to parents that will be sending because their work and life situation allows no other choice to those of us not sending everyone wants an environment that will make best possible effort to reduce the spread that will take place in schools and the community.

Just imagine how much more minimized it could be if the province like Alberta redirected the new Federal school Covid dollars it has sitting there to school divisions and the division put some of that money into expanding the remote learning system it has in place. More hired staff for remote learning means less kids by choice within school walls means more distancing means less spread. In Toronto 60,000 out of 250,000 have chosen remote learning. In Ottawa 26.9% of elementary students. Given proper notice and same option I've seen no reason not to assume it would be in that 1/4 area here too. Also a win-win-win.
"
I do agree there should be a way to make the remote learning happen. In our situation even if we could do remote learning we would be sending our kids to school. The social aspect of school and the fact they will get a better education in the school outweighs any fear of Covid in my mind anyways. As soon as we heard school was going to happen there was no question that our kids would be going back. I have talked to several parents that feel the same. I can see both sides of it so yes there should be options for those not wanting to send kids to school. This is the most excited our kids have been to go back to school.