Read on Twitter
I keep seeing increasing amounts of talk regarding opening Ontario schools up fully in September for a number of reasons. As a work-at-home parent, I would love for this to happen. However, I'm not going to advocate for it because it's the wrong move. Here's why: /1
1) First and foremost, we still don't have any idea what the second wave is going to be like or if/when it's going to happen.
2) We need to pay attention to the "MLS is Back" soccer tournament. Entire teams are being pulled out of it due to COVID.
https://www.espn.com/soccer/nashville-sc/story/4131378/nashville-follow-dallaspull-out-of-mls-is-back-tournament-after-coronavirus-tests
/2
2) We need to pay attention to the "MLS is Back" soccer tournament. Entire teams are being pulled out of it due to COVID.
https://www.espn.com/soccer/nashville-sc/story/4131378/nashville-follow-dallaspull-out-of-mls-is-back-tournament-after-coronavirus-tests
/2
3) There is no practical way in which students can go back to school full-time and maintain physical distancing and maximum classroom sizes of 15. The idea of repurposing community centres and churches is utterly ridiculous, and including more portables is just as bad. /3
4) The staff. Where is this additional staff supposed to come from? I know there are quite a few LTOs that would be willing to gain experience, but do we have enough teachers to add classes AND fill in for teachers who may not be able to teach due to health or other concerns? /4
5) Staff part 2. One of the major concerns around school reopenings is that of children as COVID transmitters, but why is no one talking about the staff in the same regard? The children will generally be from one catchment area. The same cannot be said of the staff. /5
6) The Rt number. Yes, it's trending downward (thanks to @imgrund and his awesome work in that regard), but it's not at zero yet or even say 0.5.
7) The case numbers. They're still in triple digits daily throughout Ontario. /6
7) The case numbers. They're still in triple digits daily throughout Ontario. /6
8) The border. We've already started opening it up to major professional sports franchises (BAD move), which could potentially lead to border reopenings for "non-essential travel" throughout the summer. If it opens, we're in trouble. This is still TBD. /7
9) Therapy centres. I've taken the boy to therapy over the last few weeks, and therapy centres have given us a good indicator of how schools would must operate if they're to remain safe. The staff at the boy's centre have to deep clean for three hours at the end of EVERY DAY. /8
They don't serve all of the kids all of the time. No child can be seen for more than 4 hours. They need to end sessions 15 minutes early (at the parents' expense) to be able to clean between them. If they can't operate at capacity, neither can schools. /9
I understand why people want schools to reopen in full. I do too. Our kids need the socialization, the structure, and the educational supports. The problem is that we're just not ready yet, much as all of us would like to be. /10 /END
