ONTARIO – The Upper Canada District School Board (UCDSB) has revealed the results of a survey asking parents to choose between remote learning, and a return to the classroom.
The UCDSB survey received a 85 per cent response rate from families and of those who responded, 18,054 students , or 80 per cent were confirmed to be returning to the classroom. The remaining 4,452 of respondents choose to continue with remote learning, the bulk of that number, 3,184, are elementary school students.
In July, the UCDSB surveyed 5,000 families, at that time only six per cent of respondents favoured remote learning.
“It is critical to our planning that we know how our students will be joining us for the upcoming school year, and we want to thank everyone who filled out the form. We know that this wasn’t an easy decision for parents, as there are many factors to consider. We all want what is best for students right now and only our families can decide that,” says Stephen Sliwa, Director of Education. “Although this school year will look very different, what hasn’t changed is our dedication to our students. Our immediate priorities are to ensure that our school staff and facilities are ready for the safe return of students. We are devoting additional attention to the increased numbers of students who have selected remote learning for the 2020-2021 school year to ensure that we have the necessary staffing in place. Both of these priorities require time and care so that we can effectively open our schools safely and with quality programming.”
Parents were only given six days, from Aug. 14 to Aug. 20, to complete the survey and choose between remote and in-person learning for their children.
Anyone who did not respond to the survey will see their children back in class automatically. If parents wish to have their children enrolled in the remote learning program instead, they must contact the UCDSB during the week of Aug. 24.
