Ontario schools in low-risk communities should scrap COVID-19 restrictions like distancing and cohorting, experts say
Schools in communities with a low number of COVID-19 hospitalizations should be able to forgo physical distancing and cohorting in the fall while adopting a more relaxed approach when it comes to masking and screening students for symptoms, according to a new paper being released by Ontario’s science table.
The paper, which was prepared by a Sick Kids led group of experts, argues that schools should remain open for in-person learning “barring catastrophic circumstances” and that extracurricular activities should be prioritized as “an important component of return-to-school plans.”
The 41-page report does say that temporary school-based measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19 should continue for the time being but it suggests that they should be imposed differently depending on the level of “community COVID-19 burden” rather than transmission.
The expert recommendations are based on three different scenarios – one in which there is only “limited and sporadic cases” of severe disease, another in which there is “early evidence” of an upward trajectory in severe disease and a third with a high prevalence of severe disease and a continued upward trajectory in hospitalizations.
In the best-case scenario, they say that contact tracing and low-barrier testing would serve “as an early warning system for emerging variants and increased transmission,” allowing for schools to return to something more closely approaching the pre-pandemic normal.
That means there would be no requirement for distancing or cohorting, though the experts say that class sizes “should still be kept as small as possible” and that classroom mixing should only occur outdoors.
In moderate and high-risk scenarios, the experts are recommending a return to physical distancing in the classroom but only for older students. For younger students, they say that “cohorting and masking” should be emphasized instead “to allow for close interactions.”
The experts do not take a position on making vaccines mandatory for eligible students and staff at schools but do say that schools and school boards should be given access to “anonymized and aggregated information” on vaccine uptake to support targeted education and improved accessibility.
“I think the take home message really is that we have thought about a framework and guidance under the assumption that number one children have to be in school starting in September and have to stay in school, which is really the essential workplace for children,” Dr. Ronald Cohn, the president and CEO at The Hospital for Sick Children, told CP24 on Monday afternoon. “We need to ensure that children can stay in school and only under catastrophic circumstances should we use school closures as a measure to control the pandemic.”
SCHOOL ACTIVITIES SHOULD MOSTLY RESUME WITH PRECAUTIONS
The paper released on Monday goes into significant detail about the harm caused to students by prolonged school closures, citing research which suggests that only 15 to 60 per cent of learning loss could be mitigated through remote learning.
The paper says that there is also “significant evidence” that the closures have had an impact on the physical and mental wellbeing of children with high rates of anxiety and depression being observed.
The experts say that students should be greeted by a more normal school environment in the fall with the resumption of many activities that were put on hold this year.
That means that assemblies can resume in “low risk communities” while remaining online only in “high risk communities.” Intramural sports and competitive sports, meanwhile, can be held both outdoors and indoors in low-risk communities but in high-risk communities they should be outdoors-only.
Cafeteria closures are not recommended for any of the scenarios but the experts say that in high risk communities additional measures such as staggered lunch breaks and shorter lunch times could be put into place to reduce the risk of transmission.
“The past was dominated by using schools or school closure as a blunt tool for pandemic control. That should not happen anymore. We should make that history,” Dr. Peter Juni, the scientific director of Ontario's science advisory table, told CP24. “I think we had real consensus on the harms done to our kids (from school closures). Ontario actually had the longest deviation from in-person learning in Canada and we were probably also relatively world leaning on that one and that is not a good place to be. Next time we are in situations where new need to fine tune our response it shouldn’t be schools that have to stay closed or become closed.”
The Ford government has not yet released its plan for the resumption of classes but Education Minister Stephen Lecce has previously suggested that one will be made public sometime this month.
In a statement issued on Monday afternoon, Lecce said that his government is “following the advice of Sick Kids and paediatric experts” when it comes to the return to class and has already invested $1.6 billion in keeping students safe.
He said that the back-to-school plan will “will work to ensure a more normal in-class learning experience” in September, including the resumption o extracurricular activities. He did not, however, specifically address the dozens of recommendations made by the Sick Kids-led panel.
OTHER HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE PAPER:
• Symptoms screening as students arrive for school should only be considered in high-risk communities
• The symptom list should be narrowed in low-risk communities to focus on ones more commonly associated with COVID-19
• Fully vaccinated students who develop symptoms should also be exempted from a previous policy requiring that they isolate for 14 days or test negative for COVID-19.
• Asymptomatic testing of students is not recommended in low or moderate risk communities and should be further studied for high-risk communities due to “substantial logistical and equity concerns.”
• The definition of high-risk contacts should be reconsidered to minimize disruption to in-person learning
• Masking should be optional in low-risk communities but is recommended in moderate and high-risk communities
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Lawsuit against Meta asks if Facebook users have right to control their feeds using external tools
Do social media users have the right to control what they see — or don't see — on their feeds?
BREAKING 15-year-old boy stabbed in Ottawa on Thursday dies
A 15-year old boy who was critically injured after a stabbing in Nepean on Thursday has died of his injuries, Ottawa's English public school board said Sunday.
Dash cam catches moment suspected drunk driver hits parked car, sends it careening into North Shore flower shop
Police say it’s fortunate no one was injured or killed in a collision at North Vancouver’s Park and Tilford shopping centre Saturday evening that sent one vehicle careening into a flower shop and another into a set of concrete barriers outside a Winners store.
Princess Anne lays wreath at Battle of Atlantic ceremony; honours late Queen
Princess Anne saluted Canadian veterans and current forces members today during a ceremony at British Columbia's legislature cenotaph commemorating the Second World War's Battle of the Atlantic.
El Nino weakening doesn't mean cooler temperatures this summer, forecasters say
As Canadians brace themselves for summer temperatures, forecasters say a weakening El Nino cycle doesn’t mean relief from the heat.
As storms moves across Texas, 1 child dies after being swept away in floodwaters
A child in Texas died Sunday after being swept away in floodwaters as storms swept across the state.
Nylander defends Leafs' core after playoff exit, Toronto again picks up the pieces
The Maple Leafs battled back from a 3-1 series deficit against the Boston Bruins with consecutive 2-1 victories - including one that required extra time - in their first-round playoff series to push the club's Original Six rival to the limit before suffering a devastating Game 7 overtime loss.
Amid climate change warnings, Canadians lukewarm on electric vehicles
Amid scientists' warnings that nations need to transition away from fossil fuels to limit climate change, Canadians are still lukewarm on electric vehicles, according to a study conducted by Nanos Research for CTV News.
Three dead, two hospitalized, following collision in Fredericton: police
Three people have died and two have been hospitalized after a speeding car struck a tree and landed on another vehicle in Fredericton Sunday morning.