As young learners get ready to go back to school with most pandemic restrictions lifted, the majority of their classmates in Waterloo Region will not be fully vaccinated.

According to public health's vaccine summary, only 40.9 per cent of children ages 5-11 have had two doses of the COVID-19 vaccine, while 52.9 per cent have had one.

"The reason behind this is that it wasn't a top priority for parents," said Zahid Butt, an epidemiologist at the University of Waterloo. "I think that this summer, as you've seen, most families concentrated on travelling."

Butt adds that the under vaccination could lead to a ripple effect upon the return to school.

"This is a concern," he said. "The issue with a rise of COVID cases in children is that they go back and infect their family members."

Patrick Etmanski, the president of the Ontario Catholic Teachers Association for Waterloo, says it's worrisome that the fully vaccinated students are not the majority.

"There's great known about who's going to walk through the door," said Etmanski. "Are they infectious? Are they not? Have they been vaccinated? Are they not?"

The return to school comes after the province dropped mask mandate for classrooms as well as five-day home isolation for those who are sick.

"If we knew that there were more people in the building vaccinated, I think everyone would be a little more comfortable," said Etmanski.

Waterloo Region parents, however, tell CTV News they're not concerned about the return to school.

"Right from the beginning I didn't think kids were too badly affected by coronavirus," said a local parent. "So honestly with kids not being vaccinated, I'm not too concerned."

The Ontario government is maintaining its COVID-19 school screening tool and advising those who feel sick or have symptoms to stay home and seek assessment from their healthcare provider.

Education Minister Stephen Lecce has tweeted about Ontario's plan to have students in class with a full school experience.