“Given what’s at stake, as this stressful school year draws to an end, parents deserve accuracy, transparency and accountability from public health and government. Unfortunately, they fell well short of this standard earlier this week,” writes NSTU president Paul Wozney.
Nine days after announcing that schools would remain closed until September the government did a sudden 180. Teachers were out of the loop, and it wasn’t a smooth transition. Stephen Wentzell speaks with the minister, the union, and a teacher to find out what went wrong, and how a heatwave made things even worse.
During the first wave of the pandemic, an Acadia University research team conducted a survey of three groups of essential workers in Nova Scotia — long-term care workers, retail workers and teachers. When asked if the media focused on the most important issues of their work, 69 per cent of participants responded “no” versus 31 per cent who said “yes.”
Media release: Families and teachers are currently scrambling for information following the government’s sudden decision to restore in-person learning for the final weeks of June.
Media release: With schools now reopening, it’s critical the province allow for a full and transparent review of school COVID-19 cases says the NSTU. Given the hundreds of school aged children that tested positive for COVID in late April and early May, and the sheer volume of schools impacted, a vague number in a talking point is not sufficient to assure families that schools were not a source of community transmission less than a month ago.
Media release: Premier Iain Rankin’s commitment to maintaining remote learning for the final few weeks of June brought closure and a level of certainty to students, teachers and families after COVID-19 ravaged the public school system in late April. Today’s announcement will generate more anxiety and needless confusion for families already struggling under the impacts of this pandemic, according to the NSTU.
The NSTU is calling on the Minister of Education and Early Childhood Development, Derek Mombourquette, to reconsider cuts targeted at Halifax area high schools for next year.
Media release: Parents and school communities deserve to be consulted on staffing changes at local schools and shouldn’t learn about deep teacher cuts through social media, says NSTU President Paul Wozney.
After two years of pandemic learning, the HRCE should be augmenting student support wherever possible, not making cuts to teaching positions at specific schools,” says NSTU President Paul Wozney.
Media release: With growing numbers of school COVID-19 cases along with confirmation of community spread inside the HRM and potentially other regions, the NSTU is questioning why public health has not advised government to pivot to full remote learning at more schools.