Jennifer McArthur, president of the Ontario Elementary English Catholic Teachers’ Association Niagara Primary School, said teachers report “increasing student absenteeism as a result of COVID-19, in some cases a total of a quarter to a half.” “It is not only the students who are absent, but also the teachers who are affected by COVID,” he said. “When teachers and educators have to stay home to isolate themselves, it leaves their colleagues trying to cover classes or manage two classes that have been clustered due to a lack of occasional teachers. “Last week alone, there were schools with absenteeism rates of more than 20 percent.” Ontario Niagara Teachers Federation local president Brian Barker said the union expects “a small increase in cases once the safety measures are lifted.” “But the reported number of 100,000 cases a day in the province of Ontario is extremely worrying,” he said. “It is unfortunate that the government has removed the monitoring and reporting of COVID cases in schools, so it is difficult to record the data, but there have certainly been more absences of teachers left unattended due to illness since the removal of orders.” he said in an email. “If I had to conclude why this happened, I would assume it was due to the introduction of the new BA.2 variant and the lifting of safety precautions that protected teachers, children and teachers.” On Monday, the École élémentaire LaMarsh at Niagara Falls reported that 31.2 percent of staff and students were absent – enough to require the school to inform the Niagara Falls Public Health. Absences of more than 20 percent were reported at 15 Niagara-based school facilities, including Prince Philip Public School in St. Louis. Catharines, where 29.1 percent of staff and students were absent. As absenteeism rates rose across Ontario, the Catholic Teachers Association issued a statement last week calling on the provincial government to immediately reinstate masking in Ontario schools. In an email, McArthur said the teachers she represents mainly want to be in schools and work personally with their students. “They know that students enjoy the many benefits of interpersonal learning. “Unfortunately, we are now witnessing the consequences of the Ford Doug government’s decision to lift coverage orders in schools after the March break, and teachers are calling and sending emails to let us know what is going on.” McArthur blamed the increase in infections on the provincial government ‘s decision to lift mask requirements and other protections for schools. “None of this was inevitable. “At every step, the Ford government has made short-sighted, politically motivated decisions that threaten health and safety and leave parents, students, teachers and public health institutions in the dark about COVID-19’s presence in our schools and communities.” . he said. “It was painful for teachers to watch students suffer from repetitive learning disorders in the classroom, which negatively affects their mental health and academic well-being. They want to be healthy at work, teaching a full class of healthy and dedicated students. Barker agreed, adding: “Ford needs to address this immediately. If not, it will only further disrupt interpersonal learning and have a negative impact on the health and safety of teachers, students and their families. “If the prime minister chooses to continue ignoring this health crisis, I hope that Dr. “Mustafa Hirji (the current Niagara doctor) and the local public health unit, working with the Niagara District School Board, will take steps to keep Niagara safe.” SHARE:
