Nunavut teachers, government putting wellness before learning during lockdown
“We want to ensure that everybody is doing well,” education minister says
The parking lot of Inuksuk High School in Iqaluit sits empty during school hours on the first day of the territory-wide lockdown, Wednesday, Nov. 19. (Photo by Dustin Patar)
Both the government and Nunavut teachers say teachers are checking on the wellbeing of students daily, while the territory’s schools are shut during a two-week lockdown to curb the spread of COVID-19.
“Our teachers are going to be checking on their kids daily to make sure that our students are doing OK,” said John Fanjoy, president of the Nunavut Teachers’ Association, the union that represents the territory’s teachers.
Education Minister David Joanasie said the government’s approach also puts the mental wellness of students first.
“That’s first and foremost in order, then we can look at learning and instruction and go from there,” said Education Minister David Joanasie.
“Just like in the spring, we want to ensure that everybody is doing well.”
The concern for student wellness also factored into the decision to close schools last week. Across the territory, education and public health officials are weighing what they have described as a trade-off between fighting the virus and having students in class.
That trade-off is one that’s well-understood by Fanjoy.
“There’s nothing that can replace in-person instruction, the effectiveness of that for our kids,” said Fanjoy.
“That being said, we agree with the government that this is a necessary measure.”
Doug Workman, chair of the Iqaluit District Education Authority, also agrees.
Despite supporting the shutdown, both Fanjoy and Workman also have concerns, particularly around the rollout of the territory’s online learning platform — known as EDSBY — and the deployment of internet-enabled devices to access it.
“The biggest issue we have right now is the remote learning portion is not going to be ready in time to support students at home during this closure,” said Fanjoy, who added that “our teachers have received, what I would call, insufficient training.”
Teachers have received, at most, a full day of training, with some only receiving half of a day, he said.
“We need to have more extensive training for our teachers if we’re going to be able to use it effectively for our students,” Fanjoy said.
Joanasie said that while training on the EDSBY platform has been provided to educators, the department is looking at offering additional support and training to ensure the platform is offered across the territory to the best of their abilities. He called it “an ongoing process.”
For Fanjoy, the biggest issue with EDSBY is that in order for it to be effective, “all of our students need to have access to internet and either a laptop or a tablet in their home. Many of our students don’t.”
The department currently has about 800 iPads that are being sent to students.
According to Joanasie, another 700 iPads are expected in December and 1,500 Chromebooks over the next couple of months. In addition to those devices, 3,100 internet sticks have also been ordered by the department.
“We have 9,750 students across the territory, we’ll have to prioritize and perhaps look at the higher grade levels particularly in supporting their remote learning in stage four,” said Joanasie. He also asked that those who have personal devices at home to notify their schools to ensure that school-supplied devices go to those that need them the most.
Regardless of the status of those devices or EDSBY, Joanasie says that teachers will ensure that instruction occurs through take-home learning packages.
Unlike during the previous shutdown, those learning packages will be evaluated, ensuring that learning is taking place, something that Workman is pleased to see after much criticism in the spring.
“It’s hard to get people motivated when you’re being told that the work isn’t going to be assessed,” said Workman.
But he still has some questions, including how the exchange of those learning packages will occur and what support teachers, who now cannot access school-provided internet during the lockdown, will be given.
According to Joanasie, guidelines will be provided to schools for future learning package distribution and how to safely return those packages to schools.
“The focus in these first 14 days is going to be on those learning packages, but also on the social and emotional well-being of our kids,” said Fanjoy.
“This closure is hard for our kids. A lot of them depend on our schools, not just for academic learning, but for food programs, for extracurricular activities, and for a lot of their mental health and well-being needs.”
Does the GN really have the luxury of purchasing the most expensive option for free tablets for students? Was a valid tender process done to get all this equipment?
The iPads are for the primary and junior age range. It’s important at that level to buy tech that is familiar and is user friendly.
That said, Apple’s education price point on tablets is very reasonable on a number of different measures.
I find this idea that teachers need to call their students to everyday to be patronizing. Families are responsible for the wellness of their children, not teachers. Teachers support and provide options and programming, learning and wellbeing is the responsibility of their parents. If education is to decolonialize, than we should not be interfering in the household with southen teachers instructing their families on how to stay well. They do need those teachers to instruct them on how to read stories, or do algebra. Stay safe everyone, these schools need to reopen so we can get on with the jobs teachers are supposed to do in a place they are supposed to do it in.
“If education is to decolonialize…”
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What a non-sense take this is. First, since when is education to “decolinialize” (sic)? And since when is doing a check in with students a form of colonialism? The cognitive distortions here are unbelievable.
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I think a daily check in with students is a great idea, it lets students know that their educators are there for them and keeps their education closer to the forefront of their minds, this is useful for the students and their parents.
Well, since education took any responsibility from the parents and handed it over to the hostels and residential schools, i think maybe there should be some handing back. Cognitive function should be the focus of teachers, suggesting otherwise would perhaps suggest you are part of the problem. Fair enough though. Checking in for wellness is not the same as checking in for academic progress. Why don’t we work together and expect some of that during this covid break. And if you want, i am sure one of yOur boss can call you every day and make sure you are ok. Whether or not you are doing yOur job is irrelevant.
Hello, there is a pandemic out there. You want teachers to deliver home learning packages, or have them picked up. Talk about spreading the germs around. The Government had 6 months or more to do something. They chose to create jails instead of education plans. Good Job Joe!
Promoting wellness is a great way to say we boondoggled the online education platform. As an educator, this was terribly executed with confusing schedules, lack of training and devices, and so many other issues that could have been worked out somewhere between March 17th and November 17th. If there is a permanent switch to this program, students and their grades will suffer tremendously. Get some of those Ontario teachers to fix this, Savikataaq
I think that there union boss fanjoy needs to define what he means. If it is to check on how the student is doing with their work thats fine. If it is to see how sally is doing and how she is getting along with her brother that is the parents job. Leave the mental health to the parents and the teaching to the teachers.
there are no packages in arviat for students. i’d still appreciate a check in from teachers to my kids. it’s called community.
Edsby platform cost the government how much money? They still have not got that setup yet, or figured out a way to get kids homework at home reliably yet… This whole fiasco started in March and they are still no closer to a solution to ensuring our kids don’t fall behind. But I guess it won’t matter now, if they extend the lockdown another two weeks on December 2nd all the teachers will bail anyway for Christmas holidays, since they were told to use their own time for isolating at the hubs. The ones who lose the most during all of this are the kids, the mental heath effects of this and academic effects will be felt for years.
we’ve been in lockdown for 2 weeks in Arviat, nary a call for either child from any educator, nor youth outreach worker or the like. don’t worry though, they’re doing fine…I hope.