A few months ago, COVID-19 cases dipped down to under the one hundred mark in Ontario. Now, we’re in the midst of a second wave with numbers even higher than the initial hit. Since the pandemic broke in March, the world has undergone almost a year of dizzyingly fast changes in an attempt to handle the outbreak and its ensuing socioeconomic challenges. With so much going on in the world—from the pandemic to politics—it can be difficult to spare attention to keeping track of constantly fluctuating provincial policies. To help you out, here are a few of the key issues on the table at Queen’s Park this month, and how they might impact student life at UofT.
New COVID-19 guidelines
One of the most pressing ongoing concerns that the provincial government must act upon is controlling the rapid growth in COVID-19 cases that Ontario has seen during the past three months, as we hit the “second wave” of the pandemic. With case numbers significantly higher than the other provinces, models show that if stricter measures are not undertaken, case numbers could reach 6,500 by the middle of December.
While some have been calling for the federal government to take a stronger stance in creating a unified national response to the pandemic, the onus, thus far, has been placed on the provincial governments to create and enforce measures to prevent further spread of COVID-19.
In Ontario, Premier Doug Ford has received criticism for his slow response to reintroducing lockdown measures to halt the resurgence of cases. Following weeks of inaction and ineffective modifications to the original staged reopening plan, under which Toronto was moved to a “modified stage 2”, the Premier announced a new colour-coded framework for managing restrictions in various public health units on November 3.
After further criticism about the lax threshold of cases for each category, the Ontario government revised the conditions for each stage of lockdown. As of November 15, five total regions, including Toronto, were categorized as “Red” zones—the category with the most stringent restrictive measures short of complete lockdown. According to the official Ontario guidelines, “Red” or “Control” measures will include “restrictions across multiple sectors to control transmission.”
Under the new guidelines, gatherings, as well as facility and establishment capacities, have been further reduced in an attempt to prevent community transmission. Furthermore, the city of Toronto is encouraging limiting in-person gatherings, including for work or school, as much as possible
Impact on Student Life
Shortly after Toronto moved to the modified stage two plan in October, Dean Melanie Woodin announced that the University of Toronto, as of October 10, would move all dual-delivery courses to an exclusively online delivery method. Under these guidelines, other services at the University were also closed: various facilities, including gyms and food services, were shut down, and student organizations and gatherings were further limited in capacity.
A final decision about the delivery method for the next semester will not be made until “late November or early December.” The decision, according to Dean Woodin, hinges upon whether Toronto will remain in modified stage two, the precursor to the red tier, later in the year.
Despite many students calling for lowered tuition due to the cancellation of in-person classes and limitations on access to campus, the University has not indicated that there will be a change in the cost of tuition.
Aside from classes, these stricter guidelines will also impact the ability of sports and other clubs to meet in-person. According to the restrictions set by the provincial government, indoor gatherings will be limited to ten people. As a result, most student organizations have been forced to adapt their meetings and events to an online platform. The 2020 handbook released by VUSAC for clubs states that “It is likely that the majority of programming will take place online for the duration of the 2020-21 school year,” and encourages clubs to avoid on-campus activities if possible.
The news that both classes and social gatherings will be almost entirely relegated to an online platform poses dual problems: the challenges posed by online learning, and the mental strain caused by socializing remotely.
Studies have shown that losing the social element of university, combined with pre-existing academic stresses, has exacerbated the isolation of quarantine and caused great distress to students. These struggles are combined with technical issues arising from online learning, which places greater burdens on students to seek out and navigate additional resources. A report conducted by the UTSU summarises these challenges, which include increased workload, the negative impact of online learning on physical and mental health, as well as unequal access to the stable internet, webcams, and computer capacity required for online learning.
The report makes several recommendations to the University to ease the burden that online learning creates on students. Chief among these is the UTSU’s recommendation that financial support be offered to students, courses be designed so the workload is not disproportionately heavier than usual, and professors and TAs create more time to meet with students.
The 2020 Budget
Another pressing concern for the Ontario government is providing support to Ontarians suffering from economic hardships as a result of the pandemic. In the past few months, unemployment has risen across the country as various sectors of industry continue to close; fluctuating closures and new restrictions add to further employment instability for many Canadians. Since spring, unemployment rates among students have been even higher than the national average.
The Ontario Action Plan, detailing the budget for the province and released on November 3, attempts to address some of these concerns. The main focus of the budget centers around strengthening frontline healthcare, as well as creating new jobs to relieve the mounting unemployment in the province.
For students, the 2020 budget includes some financial support, including freezing tuition fees for the school year and deferring OSAP payments. In addition, the government will provide universities and other post-secondary institutions with funding for maintaining campus safety and cleanliness.
Comments are closed.