Back to school
Nova Scotia to release reopening plan next week
The Nova Scotia government will release a plan next week for reopening schools at full capacity, says Education Minister Zach Churchill.
“We’re planning for 100-per-cent capacity with full curriculum and assessments,” Churchill said Thursday.
The province had originally planned to release the plan at the end of July but came under increasing pressure from parents and opposition parties urging for an earlier release.
Churchill said whether classes can actually open at full capacity will depend on the COVID-19 situation in the province and getting the go-ahead from public health.
“Our priority is to have students in school ... and we know that’s best for families as well," said Churchill.
“(We could) be at 50-percent capacity all the way to zero if the situation necessitates that from a public health perspective."
The minister said those capacity options will be detailed in the plan as well as potential at-home learning scenarios.
Churchill also said the department has been working with several partners in coming up with the plan, including IWK, public health and Nova Scotia Teachers Union.
He said the plan would also reflect feedback from students and parents on schools’ at-home curriculum. The department received more than 22,000 surveys from both groups who were asked to evaluate the curriculum.
The minister said the province is spending a significant amount of money on personal protective equipment (PPE) and cleaning products for schools but didn’t provide particulars on costs and equipment and how social distancing in classrooms would be accomplished. He said those details would be laid out in the plan.
NDP Leader Gary Burrill said the announcement comes "not one minute too soon" and pointed to Nova Scotia being the last of the Atlantic provinces to release a tentative reopening plan.
“We’ve had a mounting storm of anxiety about this and here we are now seven weeks or so from the opening so I think there are a lot of questions that will need to be answered,” said Burrill.
He said he’s eager to find how much money the province intends to spend to make classrooms safe in the fall and whether that includes additional classroom space to allow for distancing required in classes.
Tory leader Tim Houston has pushed hard for the province to release a plan since he put forward his party’s detailed reopening proposal earlier this month. He said he’s relieved the province is taking action.
“It’s certainly the most information we’ve gotten from the minister in quite some time," said Houston. "I think it’s helpful that the minister has at least given a date when he’s going to tell families, tell students and teachers what they can expect.”