Masks in schools a good first step, COTA leader says

More masks in schools are good, but enhanced ventilation systems would be even better.

So says Susan Bauhart, president of the Central Okanagan Teachers’ Association, who welcomes many aspects of the government’s newlyrevised approach to controlling the spread of COVID-19 in local schools.

“Teachers have been pushing for a mask mandate for a long, long time so we’re thrilled that this is a first step,” Bauhart said in an interview.

“I have to say there’s a lot more that could be done, but right now we’re not looking a gift horse in the mouth,” she said.

The government announced this week that middle and secondary students must wear masks inside schools except when they’re at their classroom desks, or behind a barrier. All school staff will now have to wear masks, but kids in elementary school are not required to do so.

Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry announced the revisions on Thursday but she added: “Schools continue to be a low-risk and safe setting.”

Echoing reaction offered by the B.C. Teachers’ Federation, Bauhart said she had hoped some additional measures would have been taken. “We don’t want to come off like we’re always complaining but there are ways to improve things,” she said.

Three particularly hoped-for measures, she said, were steps to reduce the number of students in each class, more funding to improve schools’ ventilation systems, and changes to a contact tracing system she said was inadequate.

“There are gaps in contact tracing,” said Bauhart, whose association represents approximately 1,400 Kelowna-area teachers. “We hear from teachers all the time that who say, ‘Look, I was in that classroom where there was an exposure concern and I haven’t been notified.’”

Bahaurt acknowledged that upgrading ventilation systems in schools, to ensure as much fresh air as possible circulates throughout the day, is a costly undertaking. But she notes all school districts have received millions of dollars in COVID-19-related funding, and wonders if the money was spent as effectively as it might have been.

The mood among most teachers, Bauhart said, is a sense of resolve to provide the best education possible under the circumstances while also being apprehensive about the future, particularly the impact of the coronavirus variants that are increasingly being detected.

“The million dollar question has to do with these variants,” she said. “They’ve raised the level of concerns within the schools, for sure. There’s the fear of the unknown.”