17% of Waterloo public elementary school children will stay home: board survey

Almost 20 per cent of kids at public elementary schools in Waterloo Region could be absent when the first school bell rings on Sept. 8.

Between Aug. 5 and Aug. 13, the Waterloo Region District School Board (WRDSB) asked parents to confirm whether they were keeping their kids at home this fall. The board said it received 62,000 responses.

The board says preliminary results show that 83 per cent of elementary kids will return to full-time learning in classrooms on a daily basis.

That number jumps to 89 per cent for high schools students who will only be in classrooms for 50 per cent of the time.

The school board did tell parents they could always opt-in or opt-out at any time, though it may take a few days to adjust them to a different stream.

The board also asked employees whether they would return this fall as well. It received 5,000 responses, with 94 per cent of school staff saying yes and 86 per cent of education centre staff also declaring their intention to return.

Global News asked a board spokesperson whether there were any concerns about a teacher shortage if six per cent of staff were to stay home.

“We are aligning our staff to our students’ learning needs and working with labour groups throughout this process,” WRDSB chief communications officer Alana Russell said.

A spokesperson for the Waterloo Catholic District School Board (WCDSB) says the number of children who will not attend fall classes is similar to that of the public board.

“We have approximately 87 per cent who are indicating they are returning face to face, and 13 per cent who have indicated they prefer to learn remotely,” WCDSB chief managing officer John Shewchuk told Global News.

He says the Catholic board has heard from about 90 per cent of its 24,000 enrollees.

The Catholic board’s survey of staff is currently in progress so it did not have final numbers to report.

“Our last update was yesterday and at that time the numbers were not that high but we won’t be in a position to truly know until the survey closes,” director of education Loretta Notten said.