Virtual school shutting down

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This article was published 15/02/2023 (947 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

WINNIPEG — Manitoba is shuttering its virtual elementary school and sending both students who are immunocompromised and their peers who found success learning remotely — a silver lining that came out of COVID-19 disruptions — back to in-person instruction.

The Manitoba Remote Learning Support Centre, based out of Winnipeg’s St. James-Assiniboia School Division, is winding down operations after the current academic year.

“Closing the school is forcing my child out of the public school system in Manitoba because this is the only school my child can attend. It’s just a devastating decision for us,” said Shoshana Kraut, a mother of two in a “COVID-vulnerable household” in Winnipeg.

Kraut quit her job to homeschool her oldest after he was sent home from kindergarten in March 2020. She described the MRLSC as a game-changer for her family, and had anticipated enrolling her youngest in the program next year so she could return to the workforce.

The mother said her son had, after years of disruptions at the start of his education career, finally found a place where he belongs — and now that’s been taken away from him.

The remote school was launched in January 2021 as an e-learning resource for teachers and alternative to face-to-face schooling for students who have medical concerns or housemates with underlying health conditions. It later began welcoming families interested in ongoing e-learning for other reasons.

While the centre offered full-time kindergarten and French immersion during the height of the pandemic, it scaled back programming in September and currently runs an English stream for learners in grades 1 through 8.

Last week, principal Andrew Mead informed families the MRLSC would be supporting its students’ returns or introductions to local brick-and-mortar schools for 2023-24.

Both the school leader and SJASD office deferred comment on the closure to the province.

“With the return to full time in-person classroom learning, the enrolment in the centre has significantly declined,” Mead wrote in a Feb. 7 letter. “In addition, public health and mental health experts tell us that students, particularly those in K-8, learn best in-person by connecting with their local learning community. It is important that relationships at the local level are strong.”

The principal noted students entering Grade 9 will be able to access a new provincial online high school, the details of which have yet to be released.

“It’s 2023 and technology is the way of the world right now. There should be more options for children,” said Jennifer Gagnon, a mother of five who has two elementary children enrolled in the MRLSC and a high school student completing courses online.

Gagnon said remote learning got a bad rap because families were thrown into it during the onset of a global health crisis, but the reality is some children can excel with prepared e-learning educators and without the distractions of in-classroom instruction.

The promise of widespread vaccination prompted the family to send all of their eligible children back to traditional classrooms in autumn, after more than two years of distance education. However, Gagnon’s three oldest children quickly started longing to learn from home again, so they readjusted.

The students’ course grades are higher as a result, Gagnon said.

On a daily basis, MRLSC teachers provide real-time group video conference lessons, assign independent work for pupils to complete during offline periods, and provide one-on-one support via call, messenger or email.

Music, phys-ed and extracurricular activities are all a part of the public school’s programming.

The Manitoba Association of Education Technology Leaders touts the model’s ability to provide families with access to high-quality public education while removing barriers to in-person attendance, including, but not limited to, student commutes and well-being.

“The MRLSC classes have been purposefully crafted to deliver evidence-based practices for online learning and teaching and are delivered by an enthusiastic team,” president Kirsten Thompson said.

Kelly Saltel called the decision to axe the program “a step back,” citing the fact the unique model allows her Grade 6 and 8 students and their classmates to thrive sans peer pressure or other negative aspects of traditional schooling.

“I have met good friends through it, and the subjects are taught at a good pace that keeps me focused,” said middle schooler Tanek Dare, one of about 20 in his MRLSC class.

Saltel’s daughter echoed those comments. “My teacher is awesome and always has time to answer my questions,” Wynter Dare said.

Manitoba spent $4.6 million to set-up the centre in 2020-21, and spent $4.8 million to operate it the following year. A total of $3 million has been earmarked for the current year.

“The remote learning centre was never intended to be a permanent fixture… The return to in-person learning is important for all students, particularly those from K to 8, and to achieve success, students need to be fully connected to their local school and school division,” a provincial spokesperson said in a statement.

Enrolment has decreased by 85 per cent since the school’s population hit 1,050 in 2021, the spokesperson said, noting there were 162 learners registered as of October 2022.

In March 2021, the province released a road map for education — the Better Education Starts Today strategy — that indicated officials would”explore the continuation of a provincial K to 8 virtual school or learning platform.”

» Winnipeg Free Press