Dear parents, caregivers and community members,
Thank you very much for your patience over these last weeks as staff and trustees have been working to refine and adjust back to school plans. There have been many changes this summer; we know it has been stressful for many families, and possibly, even, at times, confusing.
Much has happened this past week. Secondary school principals started back last Monday, and this coming week, our elementary school principals will return. We are very grateful these staff will be coming back a week earlier than usual. We know many of you have been anxiously awaiting news from your own children's schools. If you haven't received communication from your local school, this should start to happen in the coming days. For many families, the ability to connect with their local schools and administrators will make a big difference.
This past week, trustees made several significant decisions regarding back to school planning relating to health and safety, class sizes, the virtual school model, and the secondary in-person timetable. Due to all of these changes, it was decided that it would be prudent to run a new Registration Survey, this time starting via email. On Wednesday, August 26th, families will be sent a registration email for each child enrolled at TDSB schools. This registration process will be much simpler. Even if you filled out the earlier one by phone, it would make our planning for class lists and the start of school much easier and faster if parents answer this new registration survey before it closes on August 29th.
In this newsletter, I will provide notices about two upcoming ward forums next week (one for elementary, another for secondary), important back to school information, several updates on the many developments of the past week, links to the Q and A's from my last ward forum (please note, some of the information in these questions may have changed slightly due to recent decisions amany answers have changed), as well as some local updates about news in our ward. Read on for all of this information (and perhaps a little more!).
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WARD FORUMSThis coming week I have scheduled two lunchtime ward forums. Come spend your lunch break online and learn about the updated back to school plans. I know this time may not work for all, but my evenings are currently very busy with TDSB business and I have been able to secure my two Ward 11 superintendents, Andrew Howard and John Chasty, to attend these daytime sessions. They always add a lot of great information and perspective, so I am thrilled they will be able to join me for these virtual sessions. See below for the details on how to register.
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DELAYED AND STAGGERED START:
Based on the advice of Toronto Public Health and with permission from the Ministry of Education, the first day of school has been delayed, and our schools will now begin the new school year with a staggered entry. School starts on Tuesday, September 15, 2020 and grades will be staggered to begin over the first week to safely reintroduce smaller numbers of students on each day into the building and give everyone a chance to get used to the new routines. We are also busy hiring more teachers, and this will allow time for new classrooms to be set up and for teachers to have proper professional development (including health and safety training) before the first day. As plans are finalized, your Principal(s) will be in touch as to when your child(ren) will start.
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IN-CLASS LEARNING (NOT REMOTE)ELEMENTARY MODEL (JK to Grade 8): IN-CLASS LEARNING
In-class learning for elementary and middle school will commence 5 days per week with slightly reduced class sizes. Cohorted classes will stay together with one teacher where possible (one teacher and one DECE in kindergarten classes with 16+ students). Students can expect to see changes in the timing of recesses, lunches, and washroom breaks as they are staggered to support cohorting. Specialized teachers, like French teachers, will still be able to go into classrooms to provide the full breadth of programming for students. All elementary classes will have a Brighstpace or Google classroom in use, so that should we need to pivot to online learning, all classes will be ready to transition smoothly.
The TDSB has allocated funding for an additional 366 teachers through deficit spending using $29.5 million of reserve funding (from School Budget Carryovers ($17.7M), Contractual Professional Development Carryovers ($0.9M), Environmental Legacy Fund ($2.3M), Artificial Turf Fund ($0.2M), and the Long Term Disability Reserve ($8.4M). This, together with the redeployment of 400 teachers from other functions, will allow us to reduce the number of students per class. The province has also contributed $6.3M to assist. This additional staffing will allow us to lower class sizes and establish class caps in elementary grades system-wide. As a result, this year, kindergarten classes will be capped at 27, grades 1-3 at 20, and grades 4-8 at 27. In addition, this staffing will allow us to significantly lower class sizes in schools identified by Toronto Public Health as being of higher risk of Covid-19 outbreaks. In Ward 11, Thorncliffe Park and Fraser Mustard Learning Academy have been designated as impacted schools. To see a chart of the new class sizes and averages, please click here. Note the highlighted version is the most accurate, recent update as of Friday, August 21.
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SECONDARY SCHOOL MODEL: IN-CLASS LEARNINGAll secondary students will follow a quadmester calendar as outlined below. Quadmesters allow students to focus on two courses and reduces potential contact between students in support of health and safety as only one cohort will be in the school per day. The quadmester schedule is as follows:
Quad 1: Sep 15 - Nov 11
Quad 2: Nov 12 - Feb 1 Quad 3: Feb 3 - Apr 21 Quad 4: Apr 22 - Jun 28
Secondary students in the in-school model will be in school with their teacher every other morning, have asynchronous learning (independent work) on the alternating morning, and will have live video conferencing (synchronous learning) with their teacher every afternoon. In-School class sizes will be approximately 15 students. All courses will use a Brightspace or Google Classroom learning platform. Students will be able to participate in whole class, small group and independent learning. To see a chart of the secondary school in-class schedule, please click here. Please note that the schedule follows a four-day schedule and repeats beginning on the fifth day.
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REMOTE LEARNING
For those students who opt to not return to school and continue their learning at home, plans are in development to create a central TDSB Virtual School. The school will be fully online and staffed with TDSB teachers, principals, vice-principals, guidance counsellors and superintendents. Staff are currently finalizing details regarding the school, however there are several key aspects about the remote learning program that have been established. Please read on for remote learning expections below.
ELEMENTARY REMOTE LEARNING (JK-Grade 8):
Remote learning will be completely different than the emergency remote learning last spring. Students will follow full curriculum and have considerable structure and assessment just as they would in a normal classroom. Each day will have multiple opportunities for live, online synchronous learning.
In the Virtual School, class size caps will be as follows: 29 in JK/SK, 20 in Grades 1 to 3 and 35 in Grades 4 to 8.
Structure of Elementary Day:
-- Students will be assigned to a Remote Homeroom with a Remote Homeroom Teacher;
-- Daily attendance will be taken;
-- 300 minutes of learning opportunities (synchronous and asynchronous)
-- Large Group Instruction 40-50% of the day (dependent on grade level);
-- Guided instruction (small group), Synchronous (live) Check & Connect (small group or individual);
-- Independent work available in Google Classroom/Brightspace;
-- “Remote cohort homeroom” teacher, DECE for Kindergarten where applicable, and prep subject teachers will deliver the grade-appropriate Ontario curriculum; In addition, expectations will vary by grade in terms of number of live learning sessions and their length. To see a chart outlining the number and type of sessions per grade, or to learn more, click here.
SECONDARY SCHOOL REMOTE LEARNING
Like secondary students who choose to return to in school learning, those who choose remote will also follow a quadmester timetable, meaning they will have four quadmesters during the year, taking up to two courses per quadmester. All secondary students, remote or in school, will follow the same course dates (listed above), beginning school on September 15. Remote secondary students will have a daily model as follows:
Course 1: 9 - 11:30 a.m. Course 2: 12:30 - 3 p.m.
In the remote model, a minimum of 90 minutes/course/day must be synchronous through BrightSpace or Google Classroom. Time for asynchronous independent work and may include small group learning. Daily attendance will be taken and students will be assessed as in a normal school year.
Students with IEPs and special education needs will be accommodated and supported. To learn more about special education, please click here.
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RECENT BOARD MOTIONS AND ADVOCACY WORK
Since the spring, trustees have been advocating for funding to meet the needs of returning to school in the midst of Covid-19. The Provincial Government has made provisions for some of these costs, but many of our calls have gone unanswered.
Tying into these efforts, Trustee Stephanie Donaldson, our TDSB representative on Toronto’s Board of Health, wrote to Dr. Eileen de Villa to request, in writing, her assessment of the province’s reopening plan and to also share with Toronto school boards, her assessment of improvements that could be made to make for a safer September. In the reply we received from Dr. De Villa, she makes the following key recommendations:
* Ensuring that class sizes are limited to allow physical distancing of 2 metres between all students;
* Strongly encouraging masks for younger students (below Grade 4) where possible;
* Prioritizing resources for schools in high-transmission and high-needs areas;
* Piloting a saliva-based testing option that could be used in homes and schools;
* Implementing active daily screening practices; and,
* Encouraging a later start the school year or having staggered start dates for students in order to allow school boards and schools time to prepare and incorporate public health recommendations.
Based on feedback from parents and the advice of Toronto Public Health, trustees brought forward multiple motions this past week to ensure all of these recommendations are covered.
This past week, trustees passed three motions, and all of them passed.
1) Covid-19 Specific Needs (Trustees Story and Chernos Lin): Despite numerous calls on the province by Boards and parents, the Province continues to neglect key funding for a safer back to school plan. This motion calls on the province to commit to systemically fixing ventilation issues, installing hands-free water faucets, water bottle refill stations and providing more funding to reduce class sizes, among other things. We are committed to continuing to express our concerns and to advocate for proper fixes. Just because everything cannot be accomplished in time for the first day of school, we feel time need not be a deterrent to making these crucial investments in our infrastructure. To read this motion, please click here.
2) Masks for All Students, Staff and Visitors (Trustees Aarts and Chernos Lin): This motion was based on a variety of factors, including, but not limited to: guidance from Toronto Public Health, recent evidence on the viral load of children and their ability to carry and spread Covid-19, the desire to follow protocols on masking within the City of Toronto, and the lack of funding for small enough classes to ensure physcial distancing of the recommended 2 metres could be achieved. We do understand this may pose a challenge for our youngest learners. The motion allows for medical exemptions and exploration of alternate forms of covers (such as face shields) where masking appears problematic. In addition, regular outdoor breaks will be instituted for all children, with more frequency for our youngest learners, and mask hygiene education and encouragement will be provided by teachers and will be age-appropriate. Our board feels confident even our youngest learners can learn new routines, and that the added layer of risk mitigation is an important one. To read this motion, please click here.
3) More Nurses for a Safe and Staggered School Re-Opening (Trustees Donaldson and Story): This motion requests funding by the Province for the immediate hiring of additional of public health nurses for Toronto schools to provide support needed for a safer return to school. It also calls for the implementation of a saliva-based test to be piloted with the TDSB and Toronto Public Health, that could be scaled up as needed. To read this motion, please click here.
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Q and A from August 10th Ward Forum
Trustee Laskin and I held a joint ward forum back in late July. If you missed it, please check out the Q and A notes, transcribed from the event here. Please note, there may be a few answers where latest information supercedes information from that evening. For example, the secondary model and idea that TDSB will have a complete virtual school (both mentioned above) are new and the information provided in the Q and A is now a bit outdated. Neverthless, many of Q and A are helpful and we did promise to make them available.
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TDSB families are invited to join us for a series of engaging and informative conversations on topics we heard you want to learn more about. Hear from leading experts and participate in question and answer sessions online.
These conversations are jointly hosted by the TDSB's Parent and Community Engagement Office (PCEO) and the Parent Involvement Advisory Committee (PIAC).
The remaining events in the series include:* Restore Calm, weekly Mondays and Wednesdays, August 12-26, 7:30 – 8:30 a.m.
* Healing from Racialized Trauma, August 24, 6:30-8 p.m.
* Supporting Mental Health and Well-Being during the Transition Back to Learning, August 27, 6:30-8 p.m. As more events may be added, please continue to check our website www.tdsb.on.ca. In addition, many of these webcasted events will be posted for later viewing, when possible. For more information, including links to past events, please click here.
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BUSSING
Many parents have questions about bussing. Please be aware that leading up to the first day of school, parents/guardians will receive an automated phone call from TSTG reconfirming their child’s start date (Week 1 or Week 2). This phone call will be made during the week of August 31.
We anticipate that students’ specific route information will be available during the week of August 24. To access your child’s transportation information, please visit the Transportation Portal, email transportation@torontoschoolbus.org or call 647-790-3829. To learn more about transportation, please click here.
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City of Toronto Midtown Shelters This summer, I was alerted to the fact that the City of Toronto opened several shelters in the Yonge-Eglinton area with two located on Broadway Avenue between Redpath and Yonge) along with another one at the Roehampton Hotel. The shelters on Broadway will be closing on September 6th, 2020. The Roehampton shelter has a two year lease with the City, and the lease allows for the possibility of a one year renewal. These are significant developments for TDSB area schools. There are four TDSB schools in the immediate vincinity of these shelters (Eglinton PS, Northern Secondary School, North Toronto CI, and John Fisher PS), and a few more schools not very far away. The Roehampton shelter is located within metres of both Eglinton PS and Northern Secondary School. The shelters themselves are technically located in Ward 8, Trustee Shelley Laskin's ward. However, their impact is undeniably felt in both of our wards, and we have been working closely on the issue since we both learned about the shelters from community members in early July, once they were already operating.
At that time, Trustee Laskin and I sent a joint letter to the Manager of Shelter Services at the City of Toronto, our respective City Councillors and the Mayor, among many others. This letter relayed not only the experiences we were hearing about from our local principals, but also expressing our serious reservations about locating these shelters in such close proximity to schools, especially the Roehampton. While we feel it is important to look after the most vulnerable in society, we also have a duty to ensure the safety and security of our students and staff. To read a copy of this letter, please click here.
In addition to the letter, Trustee Laskin and I taking part in weekly joint TDSB/City School Support meetings. These meetings bring together the trustees for these two wards, senior TDSB staff, Principals of local schools, local school council chairs, and city staff and the aim is to provide a forum to raise concerns and to problem solve the many issues that have arisen, and continue to arise, from these shelters. The city has put in place a variety of measures such as extra security, clean up crews, and foot patrols 24/7, and is working with us on a safe return to school plan through this forum. Please be assured we are advocating for extensive support from the city in terms of both security and prevention, and we are committed to working together with our school administrators, school communities and the city on this very challenging situation.
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I hope many of you will be able to join me on Tuesday and/or Thursday for the ward forums. Warm regards,Rachel
Rachel Chernos Lin
TDSB Trustee, Ward 11, Don Valley West
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