School is back after the long weekend for the DRCSS on September 8th. Thanks to COVID, this school year will look a lot different.
DRCSS principal Norm Casavant says they’ve gone with the blended learning approach because of the 702 students they have scheduled at the high school.
“There simply wasn’t a way to keep students socially distanced appropriately so that health recommendations could be met. So, we’ve moved to a blended learning model where half of the students will attend Monday/Wednesday and the other half will attend Tuesday/Thursday and Friday will be a day where teachers continue to work one on one with students who need additional supports through appointments.”
Schools were given the option between having cohorts up to 75 students or ensuring two metres of distance between students while in class. Principal Casavant says they decided against cohorts because it would be virtually impossible to find 75 students that need the same courses and to keep them together.
“So we have chosen to do the two-metre distancing and all schools had that option if they could make it work, so we’ve chose to do that. Our classes are already set up in that two-metre distancing setup.”
That new setup for classrooms is one of the biggest changes Casavant thinks students will have to get used to.
“The most you would see in a class now is 15 desks, lots of classes if their numbers are only at 10, they’ll only have 10 desks, so that would be one thing they’ll notice right away. All the hallways are marked for which way the students need to be walking, all the locker bays are closed off, we won’t be using lockers because of the congestion that would occur in those areas.”
While the cafeteria space can still be used, lunch won’t be served and students will have to bring a lunch. Lunch hours have also been staggered so there are fewer students having lunch at the same time. In the DRCSS’ return to school plan, they say only students eligible for bussing will be permitted to use the cafeteria at lunch, other students will be asked to leave the building during their lunch hour.
When arriving at the school, students and staff will enter through the main doors and are expected to use the provided hand sanitizer. When leaving, students and staff are to exit through the gym doors and are also expected to use the provided hand sanitizer.
A thorough cleaning process will occur at the DRCSS. A minimum of twice per day, high touch surfaces (doors, handles, desks, chairs, etc.) will be thoroughly cleaned.
For more information on the DRCSS’ return to school plan, click here.
