What was B.C. school attendance like on the first day back amid Omicron?
Posted January 11, 2022 5:55 am.
Last Updated January 11, 2022 2:59 pm.
Many B.C. parents have talked about their anxieties around sending kids back to school this week as cases of the Omicron variant have been spiking, but it seems classrooms were generally full to start.
According to the BC School Trustees Association, initial reports show some Interior school districts saw higher absentee levels for the first day back after an extended winter break.
But, Association President Stephanie Higginson says most schools throughout the province posted average attendance levels Monday, though she cautions it’s early yet to start talking about patterns.
“It’s really hard to say that it’s for certain, so those were just sort of some initial feedback. So we’ll know more about these things, particularly … what kind of patterns we’re seeing by middle of the week,” Higginson said.
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She notes schools are now heading into their third year of meeting pandemic challenges, with tested plans in place to keep students, teacher, and staff safe.
“Just taking all that experience and putting it together to build the plan to handle this current wave of COVID means, I think, we’re going to be well prepared to do it. I think it’s going to be difficult and there’s going to be some challenges that we’ll face, but I think we will continue to have the same success that we’ve had all the way through COVID,” she explained.
Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry has said schools need to be open to protect the emotional and intellectual well-being of kids. There are also many working parents without child care who are reliant on in-person classes.
B.C.’s back to school plan has faced some harsh criticism over the past week. The winter break was extended until Jan. 10 for most students to give schools time to bring in enhanced protocols in the face of the highly transmissible Omicron variant.
However, many have said the measures don’t go far enough. On Monday, former district superintendent and consultant Doug Player said he felt teachers had been “abandoned again,” adding they were going into a “dangerous situation” without adequate safeguards in place.
“They’re going into what is categorized by WorkSafeBC is a category three hazard without the protective gear. They don’t have N95 masks for kids or themselves, the kids haven’t all been vaccinated. It’s just not a good situation for these poor teachers,” he said.
“The minister said there were going to be enhancements. If you talk to any teachers, there’s no enhancements. They haven’t had access to their boosters on a priority basis, as they probably should have going in. We know that’s a key to Omicron,” Player told CityNews.
The BC Teachers’ Federation has also said more should have been done in schools before students and educators returned, highlighting the lack of N95 masks and enhanced air filtration systems.
“It’s very disconcerting to be in the school last week planning for functional closures, and yet government choosing not to put in place all of the measures that could potentially avoid some of the functional closures that we are concerned will happen,” President Teri Mooring added.
