Teachers' federation calls for Saskatoon schools to move online

The Saskatchewan Teachers Federation (STF) is asking schools in the Saskatoon area to move to remote learning starting next week.

As COVID-19 cases continue to climb in and around Saskatoon, the STF wants classes to take place online until it is safe to return to in-person learning. In a news release, STF president Patrick Maze called the situation "perilous," and said online learning will help protect people's lives.

"Schools are a source of transmission and there are numerous outbreaks in Saskatoon and area schools," he said. "We don't have to wait for more schools to be impacted."

The STF says COVID-19 test positivity among children and youth is on the increase in Saskatoon, and the number of variant cases in the city is increasing as well. 

Maze acknowledged the challenges that come with remote learning for students, parents and teachers, but says the current situation requires a change.

"Teachers would way prefer to be in face-to-face learning," he said. "But at the same time, the projections are that we're going to be forced online in the near future anyway in Saskatoon, with the rise of the variants. … So we can go in orderly and be proactive, or we can put people's health at risk and wait to the last minute."

And after the recent deaths of two educators in the province, Maze says safety has to come first.

"We can't guarantee employees' safety or student safety under the current conditions — we just can't," he said. "They were saying the same thing in Prince Albert and Moose Jaw, that 'Oh, it's safe to keep conducting face-to-face learning.'

"Obviously it wasn't. Obviously there was a failure in the system there."

In a statement, Saskatoon Catholic Schools said "at this time, we don't have plans to switch to online learning."

"The process the SHA has established to isolate classes/cohorts appears to be working to limit the spread of the virus in schools," the division said in a statement. "The fact that we have one active outbreak — and that location has not had a case in three weeks — illustrates that processes, although not perfect, are effective in limiting spread in schools."

Saskatoon Public Schools said that while individual schools are moving to remote learning as needed, the division is not planning to move everyone to remote learning this week. 

"While variant cases have been identified in our schools, our school division has not seen a significant increase in cases like other areas in the province," SPS said in a statement. "However, we remain vigilant to ensure our safety protocols continue to be followed in schools, which we know is vital to reducing transmission of the virus."

Regina public and Catholic schools went to remote learning last month, and will be out of the classroom until at least the start of May.