TORONTO -- As Canada’s biggest school board prepares to welcome students back into the classroom in a little over two weeks, CTV News Toronto was granted access inside two Toronto schools for a sneak peek at what health and safety measures will be in place.
At Scarborough’s Wexford Collegiate School for the Arts high school, near Lawrence Avenue East and Victoria Park Avenue, one of the first things students will notice is a screening for COVID-19 symptoms as soon as they enter the building at designated entrances.
Principal Tom Lazarou explains that this health and safety measure would complement a pre-screening conducted at home by their parents.
“As they arrive at our doorstep we will ask very similar questions,” Lazarou said. “[Do they have a] fever, cough, sore throat, symptoms that are COVID-19-related. As well as if they have travelled out of the province or out of the country.”
If a student passes the screening process, they will then make their way to their assigned classroom—capped at 15 students—and take their assigned seat which maintains a distance of two metres from their classmates.
If a student does not pass the screening, they will be sent to an “isolation room,” which Lazarou has dubbed the “wellness room,” where they would be supervised at a distance by a staff member until they are picked up by a parent or guardian.
Lazarou said that a similar approach would be taken if a COVID-19 case was discovered or an outbreak was recorded.
“We contact the parent to come and pick up the student, we contact our health and safety representative and then we would be contacting Toronto Public Health (TPH),” he said, underscoring that making contact with TPH is crucial in facilitating contact tracing and maintaining the safety of other students.
As well, all students will be required to wear face masks at all times while attending class and will need to follow “floor decals” when moving between classes to prevent close contact between pupils.
A handful of Grade 11 students were present for the Thursday morning tour and said that seeing the health and safety measures firsthand is reassuring.
“Now that I’ve seen it and I know what’s going on I feel confident about coming back to school,” one student said. “I think we will be relatively safe throughout the year or however long this will last,” said another.
Meanwhile, Lazarou said that cleaning and sanitization efforts have been ramped up. He also says that the cafeteria and other congregational settings will be off limits and lockers will remain closed.
What’s the plan for elementary schools?
The plan for elementary schools will be very similar to high schools, according to George Webster Elementary School Principal Lise Medd, who admits that there is some anxiety as summer draws to a close.
“We all have a little bit of anxiety, however we’ve been given a lot of support through the board,” Medd told CTV News Toronto.
“We happen to have a wonderful team of teachers and support staff and administrators and caretakers. We really have to work as a team this year and build a really supportive environment, because all of us have the same anxieties.”
However, there will be some slight differences, namely the plan for recess.
Medd said that at that time students will “probably partner with other students from one other class” for a maximum of 50 kids while remaining in their assigned cohorts for outdoor play.
Additionally, Medd said that the school’s physical education teacher has developed programs that include hula hoops for social distancing and using pool noodles to make sure kids are apart while keeping active.
Enhanced cleaning will also be taking place with caretakers visiting classrooms throughout the day.
“I think if we work together and really get the support that the board has been giving us up to now I think we will be able to move forward as best we can with the understanding we have,” Medd said.
With files from Mike Walker.
