REGINA -- Regina high schools are making changes to class schedules and term formats to try to limit interactions between staff and students.
REGINA PUBLIC SCHOOLS
The Regina Public Schools division is following a “quint” schedule, dividing the school year into five learning terms.
The schedule is “designed to support the health and safety of students and staff members,” according to an announcement from the division.
Students will attend two classes per day, one in the morning and one in the afternoon, for about 34 to 35 days. Each period will be 160 minutes long with staggered 10-minute breaks.
This schedule will be followed until students achieve all 10 credits per school year.
- QUINT 1: Sept. 8 to Oct. 28
- QUINT 2: Oct. 30 to Dec. 18
- QUINT 3: Jan 5 to March 1
- QUINT 4: Mar. 3 to May 3
- QUINT 5: May 5 to June 23
Each school will determine specific start times and lunch hours. Individual students will receive their timetables before school starts.
REGINA CATHOLIC SCHOOLS
Catholic high schools in Regina will be splitting up their year into four quarterly terms.
Each term, students will take two 128 minute classes per day and one 64 minute class. Breaks, class transitions and lunch will be staggered.
“This will limit movement between classes, limit the number of student-student contacts, and minimize the number of teachers working with students while maximizing student learning opportunities and student engagement,” Regina Catholic Schools said in a post on their website.
Individual schools are expected to release their specific return to school plans by the end of day Wednesday.
CHANGES FOR STUDENTS, STAFF
The schedule changes mean a much different-than-usual school day for both students and teachers.
“Ultimately it’s being done in the interest of student safety, of course there will be some responsibility on teaching staff to alter their classes,” Patrick Maze, the President of the Saskatchewan Teachers’ Federation, said.
Maze said teachers will need to make sure they plan out the breaks for students at the right times during the day, and try doing other forms of instruction when returning from the breaks.
“It could be a long period of time if they’re just sitting there doing seat work the whole time, so hopefully teachers will have the ability to shake things up a little bit,” he added.
Maze said the fact this schedule means a student might not learn about course they took at the start of 2020 again until late next school year is a concern, but added due to the semester system, students regularly finish a class in January and don’t see that course again until the next September.
