There are more questions than answers at this point on what teachers can expect when they return to classrooms without students after spring break.
Right now the Richmond Teachers’ Association (RTA) is just collecting questions and listening to teachers as they express their concerns.
The Minister of Education, Rob Fleming, suspended all K-12 instruction indefinitely on Tuesday after a public health emergency was declared in the province.
While the ministry is expecting school districts to ensure learning continues outside the classroom, right now, there are more questions than answers, explained Liz Baverstock, president of the Richmond Teachers’ Association (RTA).
And with the coronavirus situation evolving every day, it’s hard to envision what March 30, when students were supposed to return from spring break, will look like for teachers when there are no students, said RTA president Liz Baverstock.
“Nobody has done this before,” she said. “Really, I’m just focusing on communicating with (RTA) members, letting them know we’re here but we don’t have answers.”
Baverstock also pointed out it’s spring break for teachers, and she’d like them to be focusing on themselves and their families.
In a letter to parents, Richmond superintendent Scott Robinson said it’s unsure when school will be in session again.
“We understand that parents and students will have many questions and we ask for your patience as we plan for next steps and await further details from the provincial government,” he said in the letter.
This could mean students don’t attend school in-person after the break, with some speculating the closure could continue until the end of the school year.
The minister, Rob Fleming, said school districts are looking at how learning can move online, but emphasized that this will be different for primary, intermediate and secondary students.
Grade 12 students will be able to graduate, however, he added.
Most schools in Richmond started their two-week spring break on Friday.
But Spul’u’kwuks elementary, which is on a year-round alternative calendar, was still open on Monday.
Robinson, nevertheless, decided to close the school as of Tuesday, almost two weeks before it was supposed to go on spring break and just a day before the provincial announcement.
A Richmond school district spokesperson said staff are working on contingency plans.
