The Holy Family Roman Catholic Separate School Division has had a high uptake of families getting optional supplemental learning at home since in-class learning was suspended in March.
For the school division as a whole, 91 per cent of students are taking supplemental learning classes at home, as of April 20, according to a report provided for the board of trustees for their May meeting.
St. Olivier School in Radville has 100-per-cent participation, the only school to report this. Sacred Heart School/École SacréCoeur and St. Mary’s School in Estevan both have 95 per cent participation, and St. Augustine in Wilcox has 84 per cent, with all home-schooled students participating.
For St. Michael School in Weyburn, only 69 per cent are doing this.
With the move to at-home learning, the Information Technology department saw 70 per cent of their work in service requests and email support; 20 per cent was destiny automation, and 10 per cent was filling tech orders.
Surveys of parents and staff were carried out on May 5 and 6 to find out how virtual learning at home is going. A total of 71 staff and 195 parents responded, with the following results.
When staff were asked how they think Holy Family is doing moving through COVID-19, rating it on a scale of 1-5 where five is “we are rocking this”, 43.7 per cent of respondents rated it as a five, 46.5 per cent as four, and 9.9 per cent as three.
In another staff survey on May 6, with 116 staff completing it, the questions delved into their wellness and the support offered by the school division.
Asked how they have taken care of themselves during the pandemic, 12.1 per cent have accessed community resources; 31 per cent referred to information from Holy Family; 75.9 per cent have ensured they are eating healthy and exercising; 83.6 per cent set up a routine they could manage; and 80.2 per cent got together with other staff while staying apart.
Asked how to rate their overall feeling about working remotely, on a scale of 1-4 (from poor to good), most rated it at three (45.7 per cent), a few as a four (14.7 per cent) and almost a third as a two (28.4 per cent), with 11.2 per cent as a one.
Asked to rate themselves on ability and tools to provide remote services, on a scale of 1-4, 22.4 per cent rated themselves as four, 68.1 per cent as a three, and six per cent as a two. Asked to rate the support provided by the school division or school, 49.1 per cent rated it as four, 38.6 per cent as a three and 11.2 per cent as a two.
Asked overall how Holy Family is doing moving through the pandemic, 44.8 per cent rated it as a four, 44 per cent as a three and 10.3 per cent as a two.
Parents were asked how they think Holy Family is doing in supporting their children during COVID-19, on a scale of 1-5 where five is great, 58.9 per cent rated it as five, 37.3 per cent as four, 6.2 per cent as three and 2.6 per cent as two.
Parents were asked how satisfied they were with their children participating in supplemental learning, and 72.1 per cent were satisfied, with 22.9 per cent as somewhat satisfied.
If their children were taking supplemental learning, the vast majority (95.7 per cent) said there are no other ways they would like support from the school division.
Asked how satisfied they were with the support received in operating the digital platforms, 82.1 per cent were satisfied and 11.9 per cent were somewhat satisfied.
Parents were asked how satisfied they were with the supports Holy Family has given them for their well-being, and 60.7 per cent were satisfied, 11.9 were somewhat satisfied, and 23.9 per cent said they hadn’t investigated the supports.
When asked if they would send their children back to school prior to a COVID-19 vaccine being available, 76.6 per cent said they would, and 23.4 per cent said they wouldn’t.
As for closing off the school year, three per cent said they would like to pick up their child’s belongings; 13.4 per cent would like to return school property (like textbooks, etc.); 18.9 per cent would like an end-of-year celebration; and 70.6 per cent they have what they need.
Of the 201 respondents to the survey, 37.3 per cent were from St. Michael; seven per cent from St. Olivier; and 23.9 were from both St. Mary’s and Sacred Heart Schools in Estevan.
