Trustees at the Upper Canada District School Board watered down a motion to push for changes to the start times for elementary, intermediate, and secondary schools. The motion called for students to switch when they begin the school day. Younger students (Kindergarten-Grade 6) would start early, and older students (Grades 7-12) would start late – opposite the current timetable. The changes were initially proposed with the time line of September 2024, a little over a year from now.
Following debate for broader consultation, the motion was softened to only support flipping the timetable and initiating consultations with the Catholic District School Board of Eastern Ontario, Student Transportation of Eastern Ontario, and “other stakeholders” – why?
The UCDSB does have to consult with their Catholic-counterpart because the two boards jointly-own the transportation consortium. STEO contracts bus companies, sets the routes, and handles the logistics of moving a combined 43,000 students for the two boards. STEO is an operations consortium: it does not create policy. Other than providing budget costs to the boards, why does the operator get a say in how or when students are educated?
Education is about students and what is best for them. A few years ago, both school boards harmonized start times, and for secondary schools, implemented a unified timetable. When that was decided, outside of the two boards and STEO, there was no stakeholder consultation. Families were told at in-person or online meetings what new bus times were. STEO are the logistics people. They are not the education people. While the consortium literally drives the bus, it is not prudent to figuratively let them drive the process or influence policy.
Changing start times to have younger students start at 8 a.m., and older students begin school at 9-9:30 a.m. is not convenient for everyone – neither are the current start times. Families have to adapt to the changes because these changes are to the benefit of our students.
Now with the watered down motion approved, there is no deadline for when (or if) these changes will occur. The broader consultation only slows the process down to the point that good policy risks dying on the vine of indecision. Trustee David McDonald said the UCDSB has made more important decisions with less information than this. The work has already been done. Science and school board officials both agree that changing the bell times is most beneficial for students.
The board needs to adopt a firm time line for these changes, consult with its Catholic counterpart, then inform STEO (which the UCDSB half-owns) what policy to implement.
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