The Bluewater District School Board has launched a survey for parents as it plans for a return to school.
The survey is open until July 10 and a spokesperson for the Bluewater District Board says the input they're seeking is “essential to our understanding of how we may best welcome back” students in September.
According to a statement from the board accompanying the survey, there are three potential learning models being prepared for in Ontario:
- A conventional return to classrooms which would feature regular school days with enhanced public health protocols
- A hybrid return which would be a modified school day with smaller class sizes and alternating days or weeks
- A remote online return which would include only at-home learning with enhanced learning at a distance
The Bluewater District School Board statement says: “Provincial medical officials will work with the government to determine which of the three models will be used based on the best COVID-19 information available throughout the summer.”
Education Minister Stephen Lecce has indicated the hybrid return model will most likely be used, but the Bluewater District Board is planning for all scenarios as it does have to flexibility to shift between them on the advice of public health.
Right now, the Bluewater District School Board is focusing on proceeding with the hybrid model, combining in-person and online learning for the return to school in September.
“We understand that it is the provincial command table that will determine which model will be used provincially to start when/if schools reopen,” a Bluewater District School Board statement explains.
A link to the survey the board has opened for parents and guardians is available here.
