TDSB teachers, education workers call for two-week school closure, more asymptomatic testing
Staff at Toronto’s largest school board are calling on the province to stop in-person learning for the first two weeks of January and conduct asymptomatic COVID-19 testing in all the city’s schools.
Teachers and education workers with the Toronto District School Board (TDSB) made the request formally in an open letter on Wednesday to Ontario’s health and education ministries and their school board, as well as Toronto Public Health.
“We believe that out of an abundance of caution. This request, these requests, should be taken very seriously,” Leslie Wolfe, president of the Ontario Secondary School Teachers Federation, said on Wednesday night.
Last month, the province launched a pilot project that conducted asymptomatic and voluntary testing at some schools in Toronto, and other hot spot regions. Eight schools within the board were chosen to undergo the targeted testing.
The asymptomatic testing resulted in the identification of several cases of the disease, and the closure of two Toronto schools.
“We are calling … to extend this pilot project in order to assess the prevalence of asymptomatic COVID-19 cases in schools across the city on a regular and ongoing basis,” the teachers wrote.
“In addition, we are calling … to move all Toronto schools to online learning beginning January 4, for at least the first two weeks after New Year's Day.”
The closure is to ensure that schools do not “contribute to the spread of COVID-19 in the post-holiday period” and to prepare for “regular, ongoing, school-based, voluntary asymptomatic testing” when students return, the letter stated.
The letter said staff at the school board are trying to avoid the so-called “Thanksgiving affect,” which contributed to the current rise in infection numbers.
“We want you to ensure that schools cannot contribute to a similar surge-effect on positive cases after the winter holidays,” the letter stated.
“We are calling for these actions to protect the health of teachers, education workers, our students, their families, and the community at large, and to provide access to data on asymptomatic case transmission within schools.”
Toronto’s Medical Officer of Health Dr. Eileen de Villa told reporters at a news conference on Wednesday that people between the ages of 14 to 17 represent the age group with highest number of positive cases (11.6 per cent).