Schools in Ontario’s largest school board will close to both in-person and online learning when buses are cancelled due to severe weather.
In a letter sent home to parents on Monday, the Toronto District School Board (TDSB) said that if severe weather forces buses to cancel their routes, schools will also close as a result. This includes both in-person and virtual learning.
“From time to time, it is necessary to cancel school buses due to severe weather,” the TDSB said. “As you know, because of the need to maintain cohorts as a result of the ongoing pandemic, we are not able to combine classes, which is often necessary on days with bad weather because of reduced staffing levels.”
Teachers will provide voluntary class work through an online platform for students who wish to continue their learning, the TDSB added, but there will be no live instruction. Scheduled events such as tests or parent meetings will also not take place.
On severe weather days, before and after-school programs will not be available. Parents are encouraged to check with their child-care programs to determine if they are open.
“The decision to cancel buses and close schools will be determined by 6 a.m. to allow as much time as possible for families to make alternative arrangements,” the TDSB said.
“We know that these decisions can have a significant impact on thousands of families across Toronto and they are not taken lightly. We encourage you to explore alternatives and plan in advance.”
Back in August, the Ontario government released a 26-page guide to reopening schools, outlining masking requirements as well as “protective strategies” to help curb the spread of COVID-19.
In the document, the government required school boards to develop inclement weather plans and policies “which may include pivoting to remote learning.”
At the time, the government confirmed on background that boards were being encouraged to create a plan that would include a pivot to remote learning during board closures due to severe weather, but it was not mandatory.
At least one expert called the proposal “a fundamental misunderstanding of how learning occurs over time” and questioned why it was a priority for the government.
“I don't believe that there's data to support that there's learning loss as a result of sporadic school closures for snow and weather days,” University of Windsor Professor of Education Lana Parker said back in August.
“One of the things that strikes me as I consider why snow days would be a concern is, you know, this idea that somehow children are like widgets in a factory … this kind of mentality of business closures and losing sales or potential revenue. It seems like there's kind of an imported rhetoric or idea from the business world into the public education sphere, and that doesn't fit at all because schools aren’t factories for information.”
Previously, schools did not automatically close in the event of a bus cancellation due to severe weather.
The TDSB confirmed in August that last year, and for the 2020-2021 term, virtual schools would not be operating if schools were forced to close because of rain, snow or extreme heat.
