Students asked to be prepared for possible move to online learning

Sean Monteith

Hastings and Prince Edward District School Board students may see an extension of the holiday break or a move to full online learning in January.

“As cases of COVID-19 continue to rise in our communities, so does the possibility of individual classes, schools or all of HPEDSB moving to remote learning for a period of time,” stated Sean Monteith, Director of Education in a letter to parents and guardians.

Monteith notes direction from the Ministry of Education requesting all school boards to be prepared for an extension of the holiday break.

“We have received no indication that schools will close; however we want to make sure we are prepared to implement any decision smoothly and efficiently, and that we continue to suport student learning and well-being.”

He said a decision to close a school, or the system, will be made on the advice of public health officials or the provincial government – not by the school board.

He asks families to be ready for any shift to remote learning, by ensuring students have a working computer at home, that the school has a correct email address and that there is a log-in to the student’s online platform to confirm you have access. Students should have already done that with their teacher.

“Once we know more, we will communicate over the holidays through school board social media, school social media and the local media.”