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ATHABASCA – As summer winds down and days get shorter, many questions have started to arise regarding what the return to the 2021-2022 school year will look like for Aspen View Public Schools (AVPS) students.
The ‘2021-22 Return to School Plan’ highlights were released and posted Aug. 20 on the AVPS website with a link to the actual 19-page document and includes a staggered entry for students, meaning half will be returning Aug. 30 and the other half Aug. 31. All students will then attend from Sept. 1 onward.
“A number of the things that were required last year will become recommended this year,” AVPS communication officer Ross Hunter said when explaining what COVID-19 protocols would be kept in place and which would be waived.
“There's a number of things that we will be kind of adopting into regular practice not just this year but going forward with things like hand hygiene.”
Hunter noted many of the changes made in response to the pandemic proved useful and may continue to be used.
“A number of the things that we did last year actually worked out pretty favourably with things like designated entrances and exits ... it helps with traffic flow,” Hunter said. “One of the positive takeaways that we're going to have is that we're in a situation now where if we had a short-term disruption, whether it was a snow day or whether it was the potential for outbreaks and things like that, our schools and our teachers are better positioned to pivot quickly to online tools.”
One of the unexpected benefits administrators noticed with some modified schedules was less trouble between and with students.
“One of our schools said that by staggering the recesses, particularly in the younger grades, there were far fewer behaviour instances on playgrounds,” he said. “There's some of those things that we kind of learned from the last year and I think each school administration will be looking at implementing some of those changes more permanently.”
Some things that went missing during the pandemic will also be making a comeback, like the diploma exams and Provincial Achievement Tests (PAT) for Grade 6 and Grade 9 but also small things like being able to use the microwave at lunch time.
Currently masking is mandatory across the province in all public vehicles including school busses until at least Sept. 27, but will be optional at each school, however masks are strongly recommended, said AVPS board chair Candy Nikipelo Aug. 19.
“After much thought Aspen View has decided no mandatory masking in our schools,” she said. “This year, we encourage anybody who wants to mask to continue to do so, and that is students, staff, anybody.”
Hand hygiene stations will also remain in place at entrances, classroom doors and other high traffic and high touch areas, but the option to have Kindergarten to Grade 9 classes online has been discontinued after a survey of families in the division that indicated only 2.5 per cent, or 37 of 1,500 families surveyed wanted it to keep going.
“We just couldn't see the validity of it so we haven't officially offered anything, but there was a little bit of a discussion (Aug. 18) that perhaps we need some communication or a survey and somehow revisit this,” said Nikipelo, adding there will be an online information session Aug. 24 at 7 p.m.
“It certainly wouldn't look like what online schooling looked like last year where we were able to offer one teacher for every grade and whatnot; I can't see that we would have those numbers who would commit to it but just to see what the flavour is.”
The return to school plan also details there will continue to be additional cleaning in high touch areas, and staff and students are encouraged to stay home if feeling ill. Parents and guardians are also asked to let school administration know if a student has a pre-existing medical condition that may present similar symptoms as COVID-19.
“We don't have the authority to say that there (must be) mandatory vaccinations,” she said. “We don't have that authority so it's really not even in our wheelhouse to discuss.”
School trips will be kept in the province provincial as well, as nothing international can even be considered while some countries still have their borders closed and some areas, like Florida, are seeing an increase in cases and deaths due to the Delta variant.
“No one can roll the dice and see what the future holds here. We can’t predict how back-to-school is even going to fare one, two, or three months down the road; we don't know,” Nikipelo said. "We are just hopeful for a better year for our students.”
With files from Danica Brad
