Ford needs to listen to parents, fix his plan

There are more than a few signs that the people of Ontario are not bursting with pride when it comes to their government’s plan for school reopening in September.

For example, nearly 170,000 of them and counting recently signed a petition demanding that the provincial government amend its back to school plan to include reduced class sizes. The hashtag “Unsafe September” continues to trend on Twitter. Many teachers in the province are contemplating leaving the profession or in some cases (if they are returning to the classroom) writing or revising their wills.

Meanwhile, parents of means are investing in their own home school startups by posting ads to social media for private tutors to oversee a “pod” of select students. Conversely, kids whose parents don’t have the resources to establish mini private schools in their living rooms will go to public school, where the risk of transmission is obviously higher, further cementing the reality that COVID-19 is not an equalizer. As always, those who can afford to will pay to stay safe and those who can’t will take their chances.

But no matter where you stand on the government’s school reopening plan — whether you think it’s dangerous or ingenious — it’s flat out incorrect to suggest it’s without controversy, let alone popular. Yet the administration at its helm would like us to believe it is the greatest thing since sliced bread.

Though heralded early in the pandemic for his calm compassion, at a press conference on Thursday, Premier Doug Ford was the picture of bravado and bluster. After excoriating the “thugs” of organized crime, and suggesting that some Ontarians are taking advantage of CERB, he proceeded to insist that despite a growing backlash, when it comes to the province’s plan for school in September, everything is fantastic.

In his own words, on Thursday, in response to a question about parental concern: “I hear the parents. I hear you loud and clear. But keep in mind, we have the best plan in the country bar none.”

(In translation: “I understand you don’t think this plan is the best. Let me address your concerns by reasserting that this plan is the best.”)

The premier continued: “Do we all want smaller classes? One hundred per cent. But I think the plan is phenomenal. It’s the best plan in the entire country bar none. People are touting our plan in every single province. I think Stephen Lecce has done an incredible job with the support of the advice of some of the best pediatricians in the world. We’re throwing everything and the kitchen sink at this.”

Speaking of Lecce, the premier was extremely complimentary of the education minister throughout his remarks to a point at which I began to wonder if I was watching a news conference or a speech at a retirement party. “I gotta compliment the minister of education,” Ford said. “I’ve been in this game a long time. There’s never been a better education minister than Stephen Lecce.”

There’s also never been (in recent memory at least) a more infuriating time to live in Ontario. It seems as though the Ford government is under the impression that the more it touts its plan for school reopening, the less likely Ontarians are to object to it. And that the more frequently the premier uses the phrase “bar none” the less likely Ontarians are to challenge him.

But boasting is not the same thing as listening, and if this government wants people on board with its vision, it has to listen to them. And ultimately, it has to adjust that vision.

It doesn’t even matter if, as Lecce asserts, Ontario has a more comprehensive masking strategy than other provinces. (“We’re the only province in Canada that has imposed a masking requirement on students from Grade 4 and up,” he said.)

Because I suspect that parents and teachers in Ontario don’t particularly care if the province wins a national contest for best masking strategy. They don’t care how prepared we are in comparison to Manitoba, Quebec, or B.C. They care that we are prepared period. They care that the province’s schools are as safe as they can be in September. They care that the classes and the risks are small. Bar none.