The president of the local Elementary Teachers Federation of Ontario (EFTO) agrees with Ontario's top doctor that schools need to resume in-person learning, but not without the proper consultations.
Dr. David Williams says he'd like to see schools resume in-person learning before the province enters the first step of its reopening plan in mid-June.
Speaking on AM800's The Morning Drive, Mario Spagnuolo says it's disappointing teacher's haven't been included in the decision making.
"If Dr. Williams is going to make the call to have us go back to school, why aren't we at a table today discussing what that will look like? Because what we've done in the past hasn't worked and we've pivoted more than enough times," he says.
Spagnuolo says to be clear, ETFO members never wanted to leave the classroom.
"So what we are still asking is that if we are going to go back, what has changed since we left? What enhanced safety protocols has the government put in place to ensure we're not pivoting back to online learning in the middle of June or toward the end of June?," he says.
According to Spagnuolo, teachers are feeling more confident about getting back into the classroom now that vaccinations are rolling out at a quicker pace.
"Not all of them have been vaccinated within the past two weeks but the majority have been," he says. "But I've always said they best place to learn is inside the school, inside the classroom. We will be ready to go back."
High schools and elementary schools across the province have been shut down to in-person learning since mid-April.
Dr. David Williams says he has heard from many public health agencies, including those in the hard-hit Toronto area, who want to see schools reopen.
When asked about a regional approach, Dr. Williams said he would be open to that idea to allow some school boards to return to in-person class sooner than others.
A final decision has not been made.