Unions happy but cautious about back to school plan

Unions happy but cautious about back to school plan

Quebec’s Education Minister, Jean-François Roberge introduced the province’s return to school plan for 2021/22. Due to concerns about the Delta variant, masks will be mandatory in certain situations, but not in classrooms, outside or in daycares.

This is good news, according to Josée Scalabrini, President of the Federation of Teaching Unions (FSE-CSQ), who was pleased with the term that Roberge used, calling it a “return to almost normal”. Despite everything, she would like more time for teaching staff and establishments to adjust to the new measures.

Masks will be required on busses, where the seating will be assigned to students, and in common areas. Scalabrini said that she hopes the Ministry of Education will change its communication strategy and inform school staff before making announcements.

“We don’t want to experience what we experienced last year, where balloons are floated during press conferences and when the population reacts, they back down. We saw that too often, if there are announcements to be made about the school environment, we want school staff informed before the public,” she said.

During the press conference, Roberge said that easing public health measures was possible because of the vaccine effort. He called on all young people between 12 and 17 to get vaccinated as soon as possible.

He also announced vaccination initiatives starting next week in areas with low vaccination rates. The campaign will resume at the start of the school year.

The full (French-language) interview with Scalabrini is available here.