Remote school is not the problem
Being mad at emergency remote school during a pandemic is like being mad at your umbrella folding over in a hurricane. It’s hardly the umbrella’s fault you have to be out in the storm and there are no proper storm shelters set up for you to use.
Just like we all know weather happens and we can see bad storms moving on radar, we all could see the infection numbers rising and there was a distinct point that the Ford government knew we needed to make changes in order to stop this from being such a chaotic and epic burden on the healthcare system. For two years they have had the opportunity to put in proper ventilation in schools and add HVAC air purification. In fact, if they had paid attention to the third review of the AODA by the Honourable David C. Onley, they would have had this completed prior to Covid for accessibility for people with asthma, allergies, or chemical disabilities.
Small businesses should have been given funding to upgrade their air quality, and large businesses tax deductions to do the same. Proper N95 masks and rapid tests should be given to all Ontarian’s by mail so everyone could have equal access to safety without waiting in long lines in malls or asking people to go to the LCBO (should these even exist in your rural area). People on support programs like ODSP and OW should be given money to stay safe, pay for fast internet and have groceries delivered instead of forcing people to use public transit to go to inaccessible food banks and risk exposures. Our Premier should be giving people money to tide them over during job losses, and parents to stay home with kids if they or their kids are high risk. He literally froze nurses wages in 2020 with Bill 124, so it’s no surprise that after two years of pandemic with late and bare minimum sick pay, our healthcare staff are burned out, ill or have quit. We had half a storm shelter built and he tore it down.
Remote school, if given time to plan can be wonderful. In Guelph we are lucky to have dedicated remote school (go ERP Otters!) that is beautifully organized. My daughter has been a student for the last year and a half due to me being high risk. Just as you would not have optimal performance if your boss gave you zero notice to change your entire process and tools in a weekend twice a year, with no additional budget, we cannot expect teachers to create miracles. They cannot hold back the wind with sheer will.
We are not all in the same homes in this storm. Some are living in straw buildings through decades of system neglect, others are in cement bunkers. Our Premier chose to wade out the storm from his fortified cabin rather than provide the tools to create shelter for everyone else. He is our combined problem, not remote school.
