The Nova Scotia Teachers Union (NSTU) is commending the province for moving schools online temporarily as they work to make improvements at schools that will better help protect both students and staff.
On Wednesday, Premier Tim Houston announced that students would not be returning to classrooms on January 10 as originally planned, instead, the province will switch to online learning from January 10-17.
The reason behind the change was to give the province another week to upgrade ventilation systems in schools and procure more PPE for their staff and students.
Throughout the pandemic, these have been issues the NSTU has fought for, and President Paul Wozney says it was long overdue. “For the first eighteen months of the pandemic, we were ignored by two Premiers and two governments,” Wozney said.
Wozney says the NSTU’s relationship with the Houston government is faring much better, “This is a government that at least has begun to take teacher feedback and input very seriously and I think that bodes well.”
Both the Premier and Minister of Education and Early Childhood Development Becky Druhan made a point to visit the NSTU offices the day after they were sworn in to help establish communications and a good relationship.
While Wozney knows the NSTU will not always agree with the government he says they were in agreement over this week’s decision to move classes online temporarily.
