P.E.I. students should plan to be back in classrooms this fall
Measures in place could include staggered dropoffs, smaller class sizes
The P.E.I. government is planning to have all Island students back in classrooms this fall with permission from the Chief Public Health Office (CPHO).
Education Minister Brad Trivers made the announcement in the legislature Thursday.
"The education and well-being of our young people is very important to Islanders and we all recognize that the classroom environment provides the best opportunity for students to learn and develop both socially and emotionally," he said.
"The readiness committee looked at various options to safely support student learning through the 2020-2021 school year, depending on whether there are cases of COVID-19 in the province."
Precautionary measures in place
Trivers said a full return in September will require having precautionary measures in place. Operational plans for each school are currently being developed by education staff and the CPHO.
That will include the configuration of classrooms, health screening, handwashing, cleaning, transportation and staggered dropoffs and pickups.
He said it's likely that class sizes will be smaller and that it's possible the department will need to hire more teachers and find additional classroom space.
"Each school is different in terms of the number of students enrolled, grade levels and the layout of the building," he said.
"These plans will outline for students, staff and parents how daily operations will be managed … while respecting safety protocols."
Trivers said if there is another outbreak of COVID-19, the priority would be to keep younger kids in classrooms but that the department "will be making every possible effort to keep students in school while adhering to health measures that keep students, staff and our communities safe."
At this point, it's not clear how many positive cases it would take to shut schools down again. Students have been out of classrooms since mid-March.
Trivers said more details will be provided to the public as soon as they become available.