Cancelling March break no easy decision
Students, staff need to recharge, but travel, gatherings are concerns
Students and staff may need the week to recharge — but if kids get time off, will they hang out with friends? Will families travel?
Cancelling March break is no easy decision, experts say.
Teacher unions have urged school schedules to remain the same, saying their members are stressed out and need some time away from the classroom or virtual learning. School boards say they would also appreciate a respite.
Some parents agree, with one mom posting on social media that she plans to give her kids a break — even if March break doesn’t happen. But others have said they would be just as content to continue classes, and end the school year a week early.
Dr. Anna Banerji said she is “of two minds” on March break.
“I think the advantages of having it are that it normalizes lives and gives kids a chance to be off and relax … it’s hitting the reset button,” said Banerji, of U of T’s Dalla Lana School of Public Health.
But kids could get together, likely without masks and not physically distanced. And “if there’s time off, are families going to be travelling” outside the city? — and potentially moving from a high-COVID area to a lower-risk one — “because it’s a time when people travel. That’s one of my concerns.”
Cathy Abraham, president of the Ontario Public School Boards’ Association, said “the regularly scheduled March break would provide a muchneeded time to rest and recharge, and would help ensure that our staff, students and school communities are best positioned to face the remainder of the school with a renewed focus.”
However, she added, “decisions such as these should be made by public health experts. These decisions must be made with the goal of minimizing the risk of exacerbating the pandemic, however, it is essential to also consider the impacts to student and staff mental health and well-being.”
Education Minister Stephen Lecce, who is expected to make an announcement this week, says he has asked Dr. David Williams, the chief medical officer of health, to weigh in.
“I will follow his advice and do whatever it takes to protect Ontario families,” Lecce told the Star.
“Given the emergence of these new variants, we need to continue to stay vigilant to keep our schools safe and continue the downward trend of transmission across the province.” NDP Leader Andrea Horwath is urging the province “give everyone a spring break that’s safe. This isn’t only about learning goals — it’s about mental and emotional health, too.”
Robin Kay, dean of education at Ontario Tech University in Oshawa, said this year has brought “unparalleled stress for teachers. It doesn’t seem like it would be a wise idea” from their perspective to keep going without a break.
The Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario “strongly opposes” any changes to this year’s plans for March break. “If there are concerns related to travel, mobility and interactions during the break, the government and public health have the ability to address these concerns,” said president Sam Hammond.
Liz Stuart, president of the Ontario English Catholic Teachers’ Association, said it’s time for the government to consult those on the front lines in education. “Any discussion around potentially cancelling March break speaks to the Ford government’s complete failure of leadership, and their refusal to put in place the measures necessary to make schools safe and sustainable for in-person learning, such as significantly improved ventilation and smaller class sizes to facilitate physical distancing,” she said.