'We are only two weeks into school, and we are already seeing high absence rates, and this was entirely predictable'
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Absence rates at Calgary public schools have more than doubled after the first week of school, as concerns loom over respiratory illnesses this fall and hospitals deal with an E. coli outbreak.
A few days after students with the Calgary Board of Education (CBE) entered schools Aug. 31, absence rates due to illness were posted Sept. 5 at 1.7 per cent for all K-12 schools, or 2,326 kids away.
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At the start of this week, that number more than doubled to 5,427 students away due to illness, and an overall rate of 4.0 per cent absenteeism across all grades.
“We are only two weeks into school and we are already seeing high absence rates, and this was entirely predictable,” said Amanda Hu, spokeswoman for the Fresh Air Schools advocacy group.
“But the fact is that when students feel sick, they can’t learn, and when teachers are sick, they can’t teach.
“And when you allow illness to spread in schools, you know it’s also having a huge impact on families and on the outer community.”
Hu said that the U.S., which usually starts school in mid-August, has already experienced high rates of illness and absenteeism due to COVID.
According to USA Today, three school districts in the country had cancelled in-person learning by Aug. 25 as local officials reported drastic drops in student and teacher attendance due to COVID-19 and other illnesses.
As well, Hu argued that Australia, which sees its peak flu and COVID seasons around July, also saw an early start to respiratory illnesses. According to a CNN report in June, scientists in the U.S. were keeping a close eye on southern hemisphere countries such as Australia, which had already seen a spike in illness, with the highest number of cases being among children.
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“This is all important information that is readily available to officials here in Alberta,” Hu argued.
“Yet there is no preparation here at all. In fact, parents who have asked the CBE what they plan to do to improve air filtration are being told that nothing is changing.”
‘Feels like it’s a very scary time to be a parent in Calgary’
Jessy Roos, who has four children and is pregnant with her fifth child, says she wrote to public school officials asking if she could put HEPA filters in her own children’s classrooms to protect them, and herself, now that she is facing increased risks around COVID.
“I asked whether I could provide filters to the class . . . and was basically told no, and that there is no good evidence that these work and that the problem has yet to be fully quantified.”
But Roos said that argument is false since the Edmonton Public School Board adopted HEPA filters last year and showed lower absence rates than CBE.
Roos said she is also worried about an ongoing E. coli outbreak linked to several Calgary daycares, infecting more than 250 people, and putting a strain on health services.
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“It just feels like right now, it’s a very scary time to be a parent in Calgary.”
Schools are well-ventilated: CBE
Officials with CBE maintain that schools are well ventilated, with upgraded MERV 13 filters wherever possible, and mechanically ventilated systems set to operate in occupied mode for several hours before and after the school day.
As well, over the past two years, Alberta Labour, Occupational Health & Safety and Alberta Health Services have inspected CBE schools and determined that health measures are compliant with government recommendations.
Portable air cleaning devices such as HEPA filters, CBE says, are generally recommended when no mechanical ventilation exists, which means when windows are the only ventilation. But because schools are mechanically ventilated, CBE has not installed those portable devices.
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CBE spokeswoman Joanne Anderson added that CBE will continue to track student and staff absences this fall, and that their substitute teaching roster has grown to more than 2,100 to address staff absences.
“We currently have approximately 200 more substitute teachers than this time last year. Similarly, our roster for casual support staff is about 200 more than at this time last year,” she said.
“The CBE takes the health and safety of our students and staff seriously. We are beginning our second school year with no formal public health measures required for schools.”
Officials with the Calgary Catholic School District did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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Absence rates due to illness double in first week and a half at Calgary public schools - Calgary Herald
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