A message from Adriana LaGrange, Minister of Education<\/p>\n
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The provincial government is providing clarity to school authorities to ensure all students have access to in-person learning and family choice for masking in schools is protected. Read today\u2019s news release<\/a><\/u>.<\/p>\n Through regulatory changes effective immediately, students are now able to continue in-person learning, if that is what they want, when a school authority needs to temporarily shift to at-home learning due to operational challenges resulting from student absenteeism or staff illness. School authorities must also continue to offer courses and preserve the integrity of educational programming, whether in-person or at-home.<\/p>\n Additionally school authorities will not be able to deny children and students from receiving an in-person education due to their personal decision to wear or not wear a mask. The masking regulatory change does not apply to teachers and other school staff.<\/p>\n With the priority of in-person learning being clearly set in regulation, school authorities will be better able to manage their staff resources. These changes will set a provincewide standard that will bring clarity and consistency for all school authorities.<\/p>\n As was the case before the pandemic, the Public Health Act<\/em> provides the overarching direction on all public health matters, and it would continue to prevail over the Education Act<\/em> and associated regulations in a future public health emergency.<\/p>\n