Masks to be mandatory for Grades 4-12 at Sask. French-language schools, says internal memo

The Conseil des coles fransaskoises (CEF), Saskatchewan's French-language school board, will be making masks mandatory for both staff and students in Grades 4 to 12, according to an internal memo obtained by Radio-Canada.

The new guidelines submitted to staff on Monday say masks will be mandatory both on the bus and at school, and that parents will be responsible for providing masks and washing them regularly. The school division will provide masks for staff, the memo says.

Students and staff will also have their temperature checked before entering CEF facilities. The memo says additionaldistancing measures will be put into place, though no further details were provided.

Radio-Canada did not receive a response from CEF on Monday, but the organization will be sharing more information about the updated plan on Tuesday.

Additional measures

Starting Sept. 1, students and staff returning from out-of-province trips will be prohibited from entering CEF schools or offices until after they have self-isolated for 14 days.

Extracurricular activities and other gatherings will be postponed, though the internal memo says that decision will be reassessed periodically. In the plan presented by the province last week, extracurricular activities and other gatherings were allowed if they followed public health guidelines.

For recess and outings, CEF students will be grouped into cohorts. There will be limited contact between students who are not part of the same group, the CEF said in its memo.

All classes from Grades 4 to 12 will be available online and students from kindergarten to Grade 3 who cannot attend school will have access to educational activities that allow them to learn essential content, the school division said.

CEF backpedalling on previous plan

Many people raised concerns with the CEF back-to-school plan presented last week, including parent Nadia Ben Boubaker, who said the plan was too lax.

Previously, the CEF did not make masks mandatory and did not have guidelines for physical distancing.