Back-to-school shopping has certainly changed this year.
Masks and hand sanitizer are being loaded into backpacks just as surely as pens and binders are, and while individual families are still trying to make decisions about how to educate their children in a pandemic, most are choosing to send them back to class this September.
Though the restart of classes was met with some trepidation by parents as well as teachers, preliminary numbers show the number of students enrolled in Catholic schools in the Archdiocese of Vancouver is down one per cent from last year. Some schools have even seen a slight increase in interest. Final enrolment numbers won’t be available until about the last week of September.
Going back to school has required an overhaul for many schools: some have changed bell schedules, re-fit washrooms with touchless faucets, or paid to install plexiglass barriers on desks.
The Ministry of Education has pledged $3.1 million for independent schools in B.C. to help pay for masks, increased cleaning, and other safety and sanitary measures.
Here’s a peek at what the first few days of school in the Archdiocese of Vancouver looked like.
