School started back on Thursday for many Quebec students -- not in the classroom, but virtually, from home.
Teachers, students and parents are all doing their best to try and make it work.
The good news is many schools have adapted over the course of the pandemic.
“We’re almost functioning like a well-oiled machine. If we would have had this conversation 12 months ago, I mean, there was a lot more panic happening,” said Nadia Sammarco, principal of Leonardo da Vinci Academy in Montreal.
English Montreal School Board social worker Stephanie Paquette agreed.
“We’ve done it before, and I think we’ve also seen how incredibly resilient our student population, our parents and our staff members are,” she said.
Until the end of the next week, at least, online will be the norm.
But it’s not always easy to learn through a screen, said teacher Ana Maria Parente.
“Obviously the academics become an issue. Any student that is struggling, it’s harder to sit and find that one-on-one time with them. However, we do try to make that happen,” she said.
And it’s not just students who feel it, added Paquette.
“Parents have to do an incredible juggling act right now. And when we talk about kids, we have to talk about parents too,” she said.
It all leads teachers, parents and their children to think about what heading back to the classroom might look like in 2022 – when that happens.
“Greeting the students, being able to be back in class with them. Getting back to being back in a situation that’s normal. For students, going back to class is normal,” said Parente.
They all wonder what challenges lie ahead.
“Probably more masks, more rapid tests, and organizing the logistics of all of that,” said Sammarco.
At home or at school, there’s no shortage of things to worry about.
“We’re a bit nervous, because there are a lot of cases and we’re worried about getting sick,” said Paquette.
Quebec has scheduled its return to the classroom for Jan. 17.
