Teachers' union urges school board to reconsider plans for solar eclipse
The union representing elementary school teachers in Waterloo Region is urging the public school board to let students out early out on April 8 for the solar eclipse.
The Elementary Teachers Federation of Ontario (ETFO) – Waterloo Region says the Waterloo Region District School Board (WRDSB) is posing “significant risks to student safety” by having classes run normally during the eclipse.
“It's naive to assume students won't look directly at the sun. The board's strategy of building excitement and curiosity about the eclipse and sending students outside unsupervised poses a significant risk to their safety. This cannot be considered 'every measure necessary' to ensure student well-being,” said Jeff Pelich, the ETFO president, in a news release.
Earlier this month, WRDSB announced that schools would be open as usual on April 8. The move was in contrast to several other boards across the province, including the Waterloo Catholic District School Board, who decided to move one of their PA days to coincide with the eclipse out of fear of students could damage their eyes by looking directly at the sun.
At the time, the WRDSB said its students would take part in “once-in-a-lifetime learning opportunities during the total solar eclipse, with appropriate safety measures.”
The union believes students should be let out early to ensure students return home before the eclipse begins.
Pelich told CTV News in an interview, that students in kindergarten to Grade 2 could be getting eclipse glasses.
“But under the direction that they don't use them at school. And I think for us, the biggest frustration is, you know, they're asking us to cover these topics in the classroom. They're asking us to send home the glasses and then we have to just trust and hope that, again, that message was heard by the students and that their natural curiosity about the eclipse isn't going to cause them to look at the sun.”
In southern Ontario, the moon will begin moving across the sun, appearing to cast a shadow on its surface at around 2 p.m., before reaching maximum coverage at 3:18 p.m. By 4:30, the eclipse will be over.
While the sun is no more powerful than usual during a solar eclipse, people might be tempted to stare directly at it during the rare celestial event. Doing so can cause serious problems such as partial or complete loss of eyesight.
To watch a solar eclipse safely, you can use solar viewers – known as eclipse glasses – or create a simple pinhole projector using a box.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
![](https://www.ctvnews.ca/polopoly_fs/1.6978852.1722008165!/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/landscape_800/image.jpg)
30% of town structures destroyed in Jasper wildfire: officials
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith is set to tour the resort town of Jasper to see firsthand the devastation caused by wildfires.
'He was just gone': Police ramp up search for vulnerable 3-year-old boy in Mississauga, Ont.
Police in Mississauga are conducting a full-scale search of the city’s biggest park for a non-verbal toddler who went missing Thursday evening. Sgt. Jennifer Trimble told reporters Friday morning that there has been no trace of three-year-old Zaid Abdullah since 6:20 p.m., when he was last seen with his parents in Erindale Park, near Dundas Street West and Mississauga Road.
Driver charged after flashing high beams at approaching police
Orillia OPP arrested and charged a driver with impaired driving after flashing their high beams.
At least 4 buildings burned at Jasper Park Lodge, others damaged: Fairmont memo
The Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge said Thursday afternoon most of its structures are 'standing and intact,' including its iconic main lodge.
Canada's Christine Sinclair: 'We were never shown drone footage'
Canada soccer great Christine Sinclair said on Friday national team players were never shown drone footage during the more than two decades she was on the team, following a spying scandal that cast a shadow over the Canadians at the Paris Games.
Winnipeg senior's account overdrawn $146,000 for water bill
A Winnipeg senior is getting soaked with a six figure water bill.
Irish museum pulls Sinead O'Connor waxwork after just one day due to backlash
An Irish museum will withdraw a waxwork of singer-songwriter Sinéad O’Connor just one day after installing it, following a backlash from her family and the public, it told CNN in a statement on Friday.
Thousands of fans take place along River Seine for rainy Olympic opening ceremony
Athletes are making their way down the Seine River through France's capital to mark the official opening of the Paris Olympics.
Major Canadian bank experiences direct deposit outage on payday
Scotiabank says it has fixed a technical issue that impacted direct deposits on Friday morning.