COVID in the classroom: STF says many opportunities missed

Patrick Maze believes there have been a lot of missed opportunities to deal with COVID-19 in Saskatchewan classrooms.

The president of the Saskatchewan Teachers’ Federation said more teachers recently were able to get vaccinated due to the increased age ranges becoming available across the province.

But many are still waiting.

“I know some teachers have been vaccinated but I also know there are a whole lot of other teachers who are quite concerned,” Maze said Monday. “Ultimately, it’s just kind of a waiting game.”

That waiting game for age restrictions to increase isn’t one Maze wants to play. He said he has received communication from concerned teachers, including those with immunocompromised families.

With the AstraZeneca vaccine approved for use in those 18 and older, Maze sees another opportunity for educators.

“At this point, we would like to receive some sort of priority treatment for vaccines. If that’s AstraZeneca, regardless, scientists and medical experts are saying it’s safe. They’re saying there’s a very, very low percentage of side effects. I think at the very least, it should be available for those teachers that want to take it,” he said.

When asked about why he believes vaccine priority has been so difficult for educators to get, Maze didn’t hold back his thoughts.

“Government seems to think that teachers are in a controlled environment. And I think we often think back to our own classroom situation when we were students. Those probably were relatively controlled environments,” he said, before adding that things have changed considerably up to 2021.

“We have students who have significant needs and students who have outbursts in the classroom from time to time. We also have fewer supports in the classroom … If they have an outburst then, all of a sudden, it’s not a controlled situation anymore.”

Maze adds educators are worried about losing that controlled environment when students head home. The same can be said when students leave schools on breaks, or over the lunch hour.

“We’re trying to trust that situations are controlled, but in reality, students aren’t perfect at wearing at masks. As soon as situations like that occur, frontline educators are at risk,” he continued.

“We keep reminding government that we’re the only sector in the province that social distancing guidelines don’t apply to.”

(Victor Thunderchild/Facebook)

The teachers’ federation also saw first hand just how deadly the virus can be. A well-known educator in the Prince Albert area, Victor Thunderchild, was diagnosed with COVID earlier this month.

On Saturday, Thunderchild succumbed to the virus.

“We’re all in shock. We were hoping that Victor was going to get better and suddenly, it took a turn for the worst,” Maze said.

Although a death like Thunderchild’s shows the seriousness of COVID in the classroom, Maze said he hopes the government doesn’t make a reactionary decision on guidelines or vaccinations based on his death.

“At the same point, it’s incredibly sad if that’s what it takes in order for them to understand the reality that we’ve been trying to say is going on in our schools for the better part of a year now,” he said.

“We know this could have been prevented … They’ve been trying to tell us the workplace is safe, and clearly the evidence provides otherwise at this point.”

Another tool — an opportunity Maze believes was missed — is rapid testing.

Maze said without appropriate directions or a third party to administer the tests, the rapid tests have been sitting in school division warehouses. He said “nobody knows what the status is” at this point.

“Had there been rapid testing up and running, there’s the potential that people would have been identified when they’re asymptomatically carrying the virus in schools,” he said. “It’s frustration and failure on a few different levels.”

Maze believes it would have been ideal to have rapid testing set up after the Easter break. Instead, the tests sit dormant.

“A number of opportunities lost,” Maze said.