Quadmesters to stay for many students

Toronto public high schools to stick with 2 courses at a time this fall

The Toronto District School Board has decided it will stick with the quadmester system for teens for the entire 2021-22 school year, saying it needs a “secondary timetable that meets both the anticipated public health measures and students’ needs.”

Last week, the Ministry of Education sent a memo to boards encouraging them to use the model, where students take two courses at a time over four quadmesters lasting two and a half months each, as opposed to the typical four courses per semester, or the lesser-used full year of eight courses running from September to June.

For next fall, the ministry wants students to take a maximum of two in-person classes at any time, meaning the “octomester” model, with one course at a time, is also possible.

All Ontario schools boards hope students can return to class learning full time in person, but that is yet to be determined.

Plans for the quadmester model “will offer students certainty for the beginning of the year and allows for a common entry point for all students … We do, of course, need to remain flexible and nimble, and we must continue to follow the direction provided by both the Ministry of Education and Toronto Public Health,” the Toronto public board said in an email blast to parents, adding that it will seek student input.

The Toronto Catholic board, as well as Peel, Durham and Halton public boards, all say they are finalizing decisions about the fall.

Burlington Grade 12 student Kirsten Kelly, who is a part of the Ontario Student Trustees’ Association, said teens across the province are concerned.

“A lot of students have reached out to us, saying it’s too fastpaced and it’s too hard for them to absorb the content” in such a short period of time, Kelly said, adding boards will have to provide extra supports for students if they opt for quadmesters.

Kelly added that students would like boards to switch back to the semester system as soon as it’s safe to do so rather than resort to another year of quadmesters.

Caitlin Clark, deputy director of communications for Education Minister Stephen Lecce, said “the ministry has asked school boards to prepare for all scenarios and to be as cautious as possible in order to limit transmission of COVID-19” but increasing vaccination rates should “allow for a more normal in-class learning experience.” In a May 4 memo to boards, the Ministry of Education told boards they will have to continue to offer students the option of virtual learning, and give families until June 1 to decide if kids will attend in person or learn online.

Boards should plan for fulltime, in-person learning for both elementary and secondary students, and cohort them as they have this year, the ministry wrote.

“School boards will be required to limit schedules to two in-person classes (such as quadmestering) with exceptions for schools where contacts can be limited by cohorting grades or if the overall size of the school is small, making contact tracing manageable,” the ministry said.

The York Region District School Board said recently that its teachers will teach in person but also livestream lessons to kids who opt for virtual learning, though if there are enough students, separate classes could be scheduled.

The Durham public board plans to have a separate virtual school set up, as does the Kawartha Pine Ridge public board next door. The Dufferin-Peel Catholic board will also have teachers livestream classes to students at home, and will likely start the year with quadmesters.

Parents in York Region are upset the board appears to be planning to stick with an “adaptive” schedule where high school students come to school for in-person classes for up to seven and a half hours a week.

Miri Blumenfeld, who has a teen in Grade 10, said more than 1,200 parents have joined her Facebook group in support of schools opening for full-time, in-person classes this fall and are now lobbying the chair of the board.

This year, she said, “has been terrible academically, and mentally stifling,” she added.

Schools should expect to have COVID-19 safety measures continue this fall, said Blaine MacDougall, president of the Catholic Principals’ Council of Ontario.

“I think most people are of the understanding that what they see now probably will be around for the first couple of months, maybe beyond Christmas, with the PPE and protocols in place, just to make sure we are going to get out of this pandemic sooner rather than later.”

He said the bonus of having a quadmester system is that students who opt for virtual learning can return in a shorter time — they would not have to wait until February to start a second semester.

Cathy Abraham, president of the Ontario Public School Boards’ Association, said boards are making decisions that work best for their communities but that they need to plan now for the fall.

“We certainly hope that by the fall we are in a better position to have more people than not be back in school, to be able to provide extra-curriculars — we know the important role that extra-curriculars play in a student’s life,” she said.

Meanwhile, some Ontario students have started a petition urging the Ford government to allow Grade 12 students to have outdoor graduations so they don’t miss out on the milestone as teens did last year. They say it could be safely done, and everyone socially distanced, by using large school fields and wearing PPE.

News about the fall comes as the Ontario government continues to struggle with whether to reopen schools in areas with low COVID numbers next month.