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
Invasive and toxic hammerhead worms make themselves at home in Ontario
Ontario is now home to an invasive and toxic worm species that can grow up to three feet long and can be dangerous to small animals and pets.
Opinion I just don't get Taylor Swift
It's one thing to say you like Taylor Swift and her music, but don't blame CNN's AJ Willingham's when she says she just 'doesn't get' the global phenomenon.
Haida elder suing Catholic Church and priest, hopes for 'healing and reconciliation'
The lawyer for a residential school survivor leading a proposed class-action defamation lawsuit against the Catholic Church over residential schools says the court action is a last resort.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
Tornadoes collapse buildings and level homes in Nebraska and Iowa
Tornadoes wreaked havoc Friday in the Midwest, causing a building to collapse with dozens of people inside and destroying and damaging hundreds of homes, many around Omaha, Neb.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
It's 30 years since apartheid ended. South Africa's celebrations are set against growing discontent
South Africa marked 30 years since the end of apartheid and the birth of its democracy with a ceremony in the capital Saturday that included a 21-gun salute and the waving of the nation's multicolored flag.
Britney Spears settles long-running legal dispute with estranged father, finally bringing ultimate end to conservatorship
Britney Spears has reached a settlement with her estranged father more than two years after the court-ordered termination of a conservatorship that had given him control of her life, their attorneys said.
Loud boom in Hamilton caused by propane tank, police say
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.