Adam Prudhomme
Editor
Local secondary schools have updated their return to in-class plan ahead of the start of the school year, abandoning the ‘quadmestering’ model in favour of ‘octomestering’.
Both the Limestone District School Board (LDSB) and Algonquin Lakeshore Catholic District School Board (ALCDSB) announced the updates on Wednesday.
Students will now learn one subject a day for 22 consecutive school days, followed by an exam. At that point they will switch to another subject. They’ll remain in the same desk for the entire day, with staggered breaks from the classroom.
The ‘octomester’ plan is a slight variation on the previous model, which planned to see students learn two subjects a day.
“Our return to school plan for secondary students has been adjusted in support of student and staff safety,” ALCDSB director of education David DeSantis wrote on the board’s website. “This recent adjustment has been made in consultation with our local public health units and has been directed by the Ministry of Education. As we worked through the implementation of our plan for quadmestering, it was brought to
our attention that the school day should be changed to reduce the number of student direct and indirect contacts. The key adjustment is that students will now participate in one subject at a time, rather than
two. This is called an “octomester.” Our previous plan, quadmestering, allowed for students to participate in two subjects per day; however, our newest adjustment will include secondary students participating in one subject per day. This direction has come from the Ministry of Education and is similar to many boards in Ontario.”
Students will receive 300 instructional minutes per day and successful students will earn four credits at the end of the semester, which runs through January, as they would in a previous semester.
For the time being, the new format is for the first semester only and updates will be provided throughout the school year.
LDSB director of education Krishna Burra outlined some of the updates on the board’s website as well.
He notes schools will still observe a staggered start, but those too have been adjusted. Sept. 3, which was originally planned to be the first day of in-school learning for some students, is now a day of remote learning for all students. On Sept. 4 Grade 9 students will attend school for orientation and instruction. On Sept. 8 all students from Grade 9 to 12 will attend school.
“I know this is an unexpected and late change,” Burra wrote. “While this is a required adjustment, I assure you that board and school staff are working diligently to respond and adapt to evolving guidance to maximize safety for our students and staff. Secondary schools will be reaching out directly to families to communicate school-specific changes to timetables and school routines.”
More information for each board can be found at www.LDSB.on.ca and ALCDSB.on.ca.