The Toronto District School Board (TDSB) has announced they will be using a quadmester schedule for secondary schools for the 2021-2022 school year.
Posted May 13, 2021, 05:14AM EDT
The Toronto District School Board (TDSB) has announced they will be using a quadmester schedule for secondary schools for the 2021-2022 school year.
The quadmester model, where students take two courses at a time, was also used for the 2020-2021 school year as students spent multiple months online due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
TDSB sent a letter home to parents this week, saying the decision was made to use the quadmester approach as it meets anticipated health measures and student needs.
The quadmesters would be from Sept. to mid-Nov., mid-Nov. to Jan., Feb. to mid-April and mid-April to June with two course in each timeframe.
The model will also allow a “common entry” point for those who may be transferring between schools.
It was also previously announced that parents will be able to choose between in-school learning and virtual learning for their children.
The deadline to make a decision is expected to be June 1, but the board reassured parents that if anyone misses the deadline, there will be place saved for them at their home school.
If a students has opted to go back to the in-class learning, there will be an option to switch to virtual learning halfway through the year in Feb. 2022.
Secondary schools with Intensive Support Programs (ISPs) for special needs students will continue to use the semester model.
The TDSB says they are also reaching out to students to receive feedback on the quadmester model. “Hearing directly from students is integral and we have reached out to the Student Senate for insight that will help inform our work,” read the TDSB letter to parents.
The province announced earlier this month that it will be increase funding to school boards by $561 million next year to help address continued pandemic-related costs.
Toronto schools are currently closed for in-person learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic and have been since April 7. They were previously closed from the Christmas break until Feb. 17 during the second wave of the pandemic.
