Cogeco outage highlights a key pandemic problem: internet quality
An Ontario-wide Cogeco internet outage on Jan. 5, came just as many students across the province were beginning online learning.
And while students will not be penalized for missing class time, the outage brings attention to a very real issue: internet quality.
It should not come as a surprise that internet plans cost money (you can reference your latest internet bill as proof). Another fact is that some people can afford top-of-the-line internet plans, while others cannot. And in some regions of the province, namely rural areas and Indigenous communities, service is poor regardless of plan or provider.
For these reasons, online learning is not ideal. Online learning is, however, a necessity in order to balance public health with the need to keep students learning and engaged.
What I would argue is not necessary (and may leave behind the less fortunate, rural areas, and Indigenous communities), is mandatory synchronous (or live) learning. The province of Ontario issued “Policy/program Memorandum No. 164” back in August 2020, which requires school boards to adhere to a mandatory minimum of three hours and 45 minutes of synchronous online learning per day (roughly 75 per cent of students’ normal class time).
A big problem with synchronous learning, whether on Zoom or on a similar platform, is that it requires a considerable amount of internet bandwidth. For households with multiple people and/or a subpar internet plan, problems abound. For those in rural areas or residing in Indigenous communities, the internet situation can be even worse. Students get left behind.
And while the province has implemented some measures to help alleviate the problem (namely a synchronous learning exemption process and the Support for Learners benefit to help cover increased internet and technology costs), an easier solution might be to scrap the synchronous learning mandatory minimum altogether in favour of an asynchronous structure.
The Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario (ETFO) agrees. A Toronto Star article from May 13, 2020, reports that the ETFO is “fundamentally opposed” to mandatory synchronous learning.
The ETFO argued at the time that synchronous learning “is not equitably available or accessible to all students. Children without access to tools to make livestream learning work are disproportionately from racialized, impoverished, single family or new Canadian homes. Not all students can be online at the same time nor do they all have access to the internet or a device.”
To summarize the ETFO’S argument, while they agree that some version of at-home learning is needed during the pandemic to keep students engaged, synchronous online learning (which takes place live and uses considerable internet bandwidth), should not be mandatory.
The concerns voiced by the ETFO in May, and echoed again here in this column, are legitimate.
And while there may be advantages to synchronous learning as far as student engagement is concerned, one must still question whether it is completely necessary to impose a mandatory minimum, particularly one that is so high (i.e. 75 per cent of normal class time).
Considering the complexity of the online learning situation and high level of pre-existing pandemic stress, the province ought to ensure that the online learning experience is as simple, and as accessible, as possible.