The president of the Ontario Secondary School Teachers' Federation for Windsor-Essex is "gobsmacked" by the Ford government's back-to-school plan.
Erin Roy calls the plan announced on Thursday a "gamble."
"I have some serious concerns about just sending all of the students in elementary school back full bore," she says.
The provincial plan announced Thursday will see elementary school students return five days a week while secondary students will see the classroom for at least 50 per cent of required instructional days.
The province also says that Grade 4 to 12 students will be required to wear non-medical or cloth masks while kindergarten to grade 3 students will be encouraged but not required to wear masks.
Roy feels the health risks are still too great to have full classrooms.
"I'm just not quite sure that we're there -- like, nowhere in Windsor-Essex County can you go in a room with 30 people for 6 hours a day and think that that's acceptable," she says.
Roy says the announcement by the education minister left her gobsmacked.
"I'm very surprised that they're just taking the gamble on sending elementary kids across the province back full bore, five days a week, full-time. I really am; especially with the numbers that we have in Windsor-Essex," she says. "That's a gamble I don't think we should be willing to take."
Roy doesn't see how the back-to-school plan matches up with current public health restrictions.
"We're in phase 2 in Windsor-Essex. You can't have gatherings of more than 10 people but, I guess now schools are exempt? Is that what I'm hearing today?"
Roy adds teachers are being put in a difficult position.
"The one thing that I did hear in the announcement which I'm not quite sure how it's workable, is how you're going to be teaching all day but also be providing synchronous learning to the students that are home. Like, that's two jobs. I'm not quite sure how you do both at the same time," says adds.
The province is committing $309-million towards the back-to-school plan that will including funding for PPE, additional staff and health and safety training.
A classroom at St. Thomas Villanova Catholic High School in LaSalle. September 20, 2017 (Photo by AM800's Teresinha Medeiros)
The plan to allow elementary students back in class five days a week is not sitting well with the local head of the Elementary Teachers Federation of Ontario.
Mario Spagnuolo says the plan does not inspire confidence.
"I think the parents need to contact the premier and the minister of education and say, 'This is not acceptable,'" he says.
The plan will see elementary students return to school five days a week with one cohort -- including recess and lunch times.
In addition to increased sanitation protocols, parents will have the final say to allow their children to attend in-person class or to opt for remote learning.
Spagnuolo says members want to see the mask policy go further.
"You know COVID is so new, we learn things about it every day and what we've learnt from the SARS commission report years ago is that we should not wait for scientific proof to exercise cautionary principles," he says.
Spagnuolo says elementary class sizes will make following public health guidelines nearly impossible.
"We did not hear what wanted to hear and what we needed to hear which was that there would be cohorts of 15," he says. "This is very concerning because it is impossible to maintain social distancing in an elementary classroom without the class size cap."
Spagnuolo sees the Ford government's plan as one of "convenience" and not of safety.
"You know, we all want our kids to go back to school. There's no question about it. But, the question that still is maintained and that's out there is how do we do it safely? And unfortunately, this announcement today did not answer my question of how this is gonna be done safely," he says.
While increased health and safety protocols will be in place, families will be required to self-screen before heading to school.
A detailed plan on returning to the classrooms in this area will be released in the coming weeks by both the Greater Essex County District School Board and the Windsor-Essex Catholic District School Board.