Parents and guardians with children in the Peace Wapiti Public School Division will have three separate opportunities to decide how their child is educated as part of the school divisions 2020-2021 school year re-entry plan.

The 2020-2021 year will see a three-term school year, which will allow parents to decide whether or not their child will attend school in person or choose to learn at home through remote instruction.

“We’ve included a remote learning option for any parent who might be uncomfortable about returning their children to school,” says PWPSD Superintendent Bob Stewart.

“In those situations, those parents are encouraged to call our central office to discuss remote learning options for their children.

For students in Kindergarten through Grade 9, the terms are split up from September 1st-November 27th, November 30th-March 12, and March 15th-June 25th. For students in grades 10-12, the terms are only split once with September 1st – January 29th, and February 1st – June 25th the designated periods.

Superintendent Bob Stewart says some of the other major changes will include the need for parents to provide records of children’s known pre-existing conditions to the schools, as well as a health screening questionnaire to be referenced daily before kids depart for class. Stewart says the self-screening is in addition to mandatory masks while in shared spaces on school property.

Stewart adds one piece of good news was the recently announced promise from the province to provide items like masks, hand sanitizer, and face shields.

“We have ordered 31,000 masks to date, 3,000 bottles of hand sanitizer, face shields, and thermometers so these additional pieces of personal protective equipment will come in very handy.”

Stewart says near the end of August, some schools may opt to share school-specific operational information with their families on what to expect when school reopens. ­