“There’s a level of fatigue,”: BCTF President on pandemic as school year nears

Concern and anxiety remains high among parents as a new school year is right around the corner in BC.

In response, BC Teachers Federation President Teri Mooring penned a letter discussing the excitement and uncertainty with the Delta variant still lurking in the shadows.

“I think there is a certain level of fatigue that has set in and the fact that we are in a federal election has made it appear there is less focus on the coronavirus and yet we are seeing three times the number of cases we did last year.”

Health Minister Adrian Dix stated children under 12 may not receive a dose of a COVID-19 vaccine until either the end of this year or early on in 2022 – a timeline Mooring has become quite familiar with.

“We’ve heard that timeline as well for vaccinations for the under twelve’s and that is great and it can’t come soon enough that is for sure. In the meantime, because the majority of children in schools are not eligible for vaccination we need to make sure that all the other measures are in place.”

The province issued a mask-mandate for students and staff in Grades four to twelve, but not K-3, which still remains a concern for Mooring.

“It doesn’t make sense that some kids not eligible to be vaccinated are able to wear a mask but not all of them. Until then, what we don’t want to see is the Delta variant circulating among that age group.”

In an ideal situation, Mooring would like to see as little disruption as possible in the classroom

“We are hoping to have a school year, where the measures are put in place where we don’t have schools having to declare outbreaks or students missing time because they’ve had to self-isolate or go into quarantine.”

Here is Mooring’s full letter to parents:

Dear parents,

September is a time of great excitement for students and their parents—but this year is different. The Delta variant is different. There is still excitement, but there is also uncertainty.

In recent weeks, we have heard unprecedented levels of concern and anxiety from many parents around the safety of our schools. We also recognize that, for others, COVID-19 still doesn’t feel like a significant threat.

But, given what we know about the highly transmissible variant, and that our students under 12 are ineligible to be vaccinated as a means of protection, we need to take a cautious approach when we return to school next week. The government has mandated mask-wearing in schools for adults and students in Grades 4 and up, but that’s not enough to keep everyone safe.

Parents, we need your help to protect all students in BC’s K–12 learning environments. This means ensuring your child gets vaccinated if they are eligible and supporting a culture of mask-wearing for all students who are able, including those in Kindergarten to Grade 3.

We are also encouraging everyone who is eligible to get vaccinated. It’s important that everyone from all our communities in BC take this important step to help better protect those children who are not yet eligible for vaccinations.

We know there are students and staff members who, for various reasons, are exempt from wearing masks. There are also some learning situations where masks aren’t appropriate. Our school communities have a lot of experience making sure everyone is included and treated with respect.

Let’s foster kindness and consideration by talking to our children and teens about the importance of each of us doing our part to keep everyone safe, both in and out of schools. Though our own kids might have relatively strong immune systems, their classmates or teachers could have immunocompromised family members at home.

As the school year progresses, health authorities and school districts can make regional adjustments based on timely data about transmission in schools and their surrounding communities. Please join us in making sure your MLAs and school boards know that parents and teachers stand together in expecting regionally appropriate safety measures and transparent communication around in-school exposures and transmission data.

BC’s teachers care deeply about our students, your children, and are committed to providing them with supportive and enriching learning environments. We also need them to be safe, and you can help make that possible.

Thank you for your support,