Early autumn heat wave beats down school spirit
Only 125 out of 584 schools in TDSB fully air-conditioned as temperatures reach 31 C
The hot and humid weather that has been plaguing southern Ontario the past few days prompted the Toronto District School Board to cancel all of Monday’s athletic events.
With the mercury hitting 31 C, feeling more like 40 C with the humidex, the school board’s health and physical education program co-ordinator announced athletic activities in both elementary and secondary schools were suspended due to extreme heat.
“On extreme heat days such as this, schools can limit extraneous activities such as gym classes,” TDSB spokesperson Ryan Bird said.
Out of 584 TDSB schools, only 125 are fully air-conditioned. The rest have either partial air-conditioning or none at all. Bird said the staff is trying their best to help students manage the heat — from closing classroom blinds and limiting length of recess to relocating to areas of the school where it’s cool.
“If there are students that have a particular susceptibility to heat or have medical concerns, we want them to talk to staff so that we can do our best to accommodate them dur- ing these warmer days.”
The Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario (ETFO) has released a statement renewing the call for the provincial government to address the lack of air conditioning, especially in elementary classrooms.
“Students and teachers in many classrooms are subject to unbearable conditions with temperatures over 30 degrees. That takes an unacceptable toll on teaching and learning,” ETFO president Sam Hammond said in a statement.
In August, the teacher’s union voted to lobby the Ministry of Education for air-conditioning funding or other heat-reduction systems in elementary schools; for an upper indoor temperature limit, which mandate school boards to take action, including closing schools; and for ensuring all schools have a heat stress plan.
Bird said it would cost the board hundreds of millions of dollars to fully equip schools with air conditioning.
“While we recognize that air conditioning can be expensive, there are significant costs in not fixing the problem. The current haphazard approach compromises teaching and learning conditions and can have serious health impacts for children and staff including asthma,” he said. With files from Alina Bykova and Alexandra Jones