Dear TDSB Virtual School Parents/Guardians and Students,

This week we continue to make progress to reach the goal of having all students connected to a teacher and virtual classroom. This has been a long and challenging process and we all want learning to be underway for everyone as soon as possible. Please see below for an update about Elementary Virtual School.

Staffing Update

English Teachers: All English teachers have been hired. As it takes approximately two days for training, we expect that teachers will connect with their students by this Friday.

French Immersion/Extended French Teachers: Approximately 80 French teachers are still required.

We continue to explore options to meet the need for FI/EF classrooms. However, as has been noted in prior updates, there is an ongoing shortage of French teachers across Ontario. All school boards are facing similar French language teacher staffing challenges and today, the Ministry of Education issued a news release confirming once again the severe shortage of French teachers. This is a concerning situation for all and we acknowledge that some students have yet to be assigned a teacher. We are looking at options and will continue to keep families updated.

For those students applying to switch from Virtual School to In-School Learning, the ability to accommodate this request will depend on the availability of French teachers in the student’s FI/EF school.

Independent Home Learning
Please continue to access independent learning resources on the Asynchronous Learning web page. New activities and live sessions for each grade are being added daily.

Brightspace/Technical Support
If you are experiencing account and password issues, please complete this form. Once the information has been verified, login and password information for your child will be emailed to you. Additionally, you can access Brightspace support 24 hours a day.

Exemptions to Synchronous (Live, Interactive) Learning
The deadline date for families to request an exemption from synchronous (live, interactive) learning has been extended to Tuesday, October 20 at 4 p.m. to accommodate the late start for some students in Elementary Virtual School.

Thank you.