Continuity of Learning During a Global Pandemic
“Let us pray together for families, that they might persevere in peace, with creativity and patience during the quarantine.” – Pope Francis
Essential Practices
Throughout the year, the safety, health and well-being of students and staff remained the highest priority for the Durham Catholic District School Board as we:
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remained committed to the principles of Equity and Inclusion;
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implemented best practices for distance learning in accordance with guidelines from the Ministry of Education; and
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implemented best practices in preventing the spread of COVID-19 under the direction of the province and local health department.
- Provided 2,068 devices to students in need of technology and/or access to the Internet in order to participate in distance learning.
- Created Microsoft Office Team sites to facilitate the sharing of resources, to support staff collaboration and to provide access to professional learning opportunities during the school closure period.
- Provided training and support for educators with Edsby and D2L Brightspace through the Launchpad Learning Portal.
- Edsby supports for parents and guardians (including videos) were shared via School Messenger and the Keep Learning page of the board’s website.
- Weekly online meetings took place for educators to support ongoing implementation of distance learning.
- Custodians completed security and health and safety checks during each week of the closure and maintenance staff continued to complete emergency repairs when required.
- Corporate and central office services were transitioned to a virtual office environment to ensure ongoing support of critical system functions and continuity of learning.
- Supported students and families in need with immediate short-term financial assistance through the Durham Catholic Children's Foundation.
- Regular communication from the Chair of the Board and Director of Education was shared with community stakeholders and posted to the designated webpage at dcdsb.ca/covid19.
- Social media activity remained active with an emphasis on good news stories, community engagement, continuity of learning and daily physical activity.
- Resources for students learning at home were provided at www.dcdsb.ca/keeplearning
- Some of the resources available included:
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- A Guide to Distance Learning for DCDSB Parents and Guardians
- Student Code of Conduct for Distance Learning
- Parents Guide to Assessment, Evaluation and Reporting
- Ministry of Education's Learn at Home Resource
- A variety of online and offline activities for learning at home
DCDSB extended heartfelt gratitude and thanks to all essential community service providers in Durham Region and around the world during this urgent call to protect families, friends and neighbours from the impact of COVID-19.
To support the efforts of healthcare professionals, Facilities Services staff members gathered safety essentials and protective equipment from Durham Catholic schools. These items were delivered to Lakeridge Health for use by frontline staff serving in our local hospitals. Items included soap, hand sanitizer, disinfectants, gloves, masks and eye protection. In addition, DCDSB secondary schools offered the use of their 3D printers for the development of 3D printed resources as required.