Smaller classes help virus fight, NDP argues
Candidate who is also teacher criticizes Sask. Party for `double standard' on issue
Another big increase in COVID-19 cases helps support the argument in favour of the NDP'S plan for smaller class sizes, one of the party's candidate says.
Matt Love, the NDP candidate in the Saskatoon Eastview riding, pointed to rising infections during a news conference on Wednesday in the park near Aden Bowman Collegiate, where Love teaches.
Love noted the province announced 57 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, the third highest daily total during the pandemic.
In one of the few news conferences during the election campaign that did not feature a party leader, Love said the pandemic has exacerbated the class size issue.
“Since the pandemic, the overcrowding in our classrooms has only made students more vulnerable,” he told reporters. “While public health limits (indoor private) gathering sizes to 15 people, (Saskatchewan Party Leader) Scott Moe crams 30 students into single classrooms all around this province. It's a double standard that puts our kids at risk.”
Love touted the NDP plan to spend $125 million to hire 1,000 teachers, 700 educational assistants and 400 caretakers with an aim to reduce class sizes.
An NDP government would work with school divisions to implement a plan to reduce class sizes, Love said; he did not specify a timeline.
He suggested “community spaces” in Saskatoon that are underused during the pandemic, like churches, community centres and buildings at the university could be used as classroom space.
Many students have also opted for distance learning, but that has not resulted in reduced class sizes, Love said.
Tracy Lyons, a Saskatoon parent and educational assistant, appeared with Love to lend her support for the NDP'S plan. Lyons spoke about the stress felt by teachers and educational assistants trying to keep students safe.
“We are going to work our hardest to make sure that our kids are safe, but our kids are not feeling safe,” Lyons said. “When you come into a classroom with 28 students, that's what we need to think about.”
Love is running in Saskatoon Eastview against Chris Guerette of the Saskatchewan Party and Jan Norris of the Green Party in Monday's provincial election.