Nova Scotia students prepare for shift to online learning amid Omicron wave

HALIFAX -

Even though Halifax Regional Centre For Education (HRCE) schools were closed Friday due to the impending snowstorm, the doors at Ridgecliff Middle School in Beechville, N.S. remained open.

Jamie Moore, the school’s principal, shared a social media post saying the school would remain open until the noon hour to allow parents and caregivers the chance to pick up laptop computers as all students across Nova Scotia will shift to online learning for one week on Monday.

"It was a surprise this morning for everybody that the schools were closed,” said Moore. “So we just thought in the moment, we had to give the opportunity for parents to come in and pick up the Chromebooks that they needed."

According to Moore, it was a bit of a scramble as there were still dozens of computers and supplies that needed to be picked up.

"Probably 20 to 25 parents have dropped in,” he said.

The HRCE said all schools have been working to distribute technology to students. All parents and guardians are encouraged to make appointments for pick up prior to the start of at-home learning.

 “Some schools continued to distribute Chromebooks today and others will complete the process on Monday,” said Kelly Connors, a spokesperson with HRCE.

Schools will remain open for in-person learning for students who are enrolled in learning centres.

If parents need to make accommodations to pick up computers, Connors says they can do so directly through the child’s school.

The Nova Scotia Pediatric Advisory Group says schools are the best place for students. The group released an open letter on Thursday supporting the government’s return-to-school plan.

"We still feel that in school and in class, is the best place for kids to learn and the best place for kids to be supported,” said Dr. Andrew Lynk, chief of pediatrics at the IWK Health Centre.

“For education needs, social needs and mental health needs.”

The letter was a conscious move to relieve any anxiety for parents about the return to class for students amid the Omicron wave.

“For the most part, children aren't being infected in schools but rather in the community, during family gatherings and other large gatherings,” said Lynk. 

Lynk says when children are infected with COVID-19 the infections tend to be mild and there have been very few hospitalizations of children in Nova Scotia.

"To date we've had very few hospitalizations for kids with COVID and of those hospitalizations, almost all cases have been pretty mild disease,” he said.

The Nova Scotia Teachers Union says it wants to see schools open but with all protections in place, such as prioritizing booster shots for teachers and school staff.

"Schools are closed to students this week and next, it makes a lot of sense to roll out booster shots to where staff are going to be,” said NSTU president Paul Wozney.

“We know these people are going to be in schools, let’s use that opportunity to get needles in peoples arms.”

Michelle Thompson, the province's health minister, toured the mass vaccine booster clinic at the Halifax Forum on Thursday and told reporters the province would stick with its community vaccine approach.