Morning start times in the Qualicum School District (QSD) will stay the same for now.
Superintendent of schools Peter Jory brought a motion to consider a 10-minute shift to later bell times across the district at the board’s March 12 meeting.
Primary and secondary schools in the district begin morning classes at a range of different times, Jory said, and a shift to a later start time could positively impact sleep patterns, mental health and attendance. His motion called for the change to be implemented in September.
The school district received more than 2,000 responses to a survey on a potential 30-minutes later bell time, according to Jory, which produced a “mixed bag” of responses.
“Schools that were earlier, generally there was more support and schools that were later, generally there was less support,” he said, and added the goal is to “improve equity and outcomes”, particularly at schools with earlier start times.
Some students in rural parts of the district catch a morning bus prior to 7 a.m., according to the QSD’s start time web page. In addition to an early wake time and poor road conditions in the winter, the early start causes stress for families, according to the school district.
Jory mentioned during the previous meeting (Feb. 27) that later start times provide a chance to improve sleep patterns and a small boost to attendance, which has declined over the past few years.
“Student absenteeism is still an issue throughout the system,” Jory said at the time. “Our typical attendance rate has dropped from around 90 per cent per day on average prior to COVID down to the mid-80s in present times.”
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He added it’s not a local issue and jurisdictions around the world have reported attendance drops post-pandemic.
Mount Arrowsmith Teachers Association (MATA) has reservations about the change.
Matt Woods, MATA president, expressed his objection to the recommendation, not based on merit, but because MATA feels the motion is rushed and added “there are too many unknowns for this recommendation to be accepted.”
MATA concerns included altered lunch schedules, as well as impact on busing, student engagement and after-school program structures.
Board members supported the idea of later start times improving sleep schedules and safety.
“The statistics that have come out about having a later start time are amazing for the benefit of students, which is what it’s all about,” said Trustee Barry Kurland, who also cited studies that found later start times result in less traffic accidents en route to school.
Trustee Elaine Young said in looking at the survey data, she focused on the student replies, and found, “the student survey data was more or less supportive”.
Young added she does not believe 10 minutes would make much of a difference and would prefer to adjust by 30 minutes. She said the board could consider the issue after the district’s transportation review is completed, since bussing schedules are directly tied to a change in bell times.
Jory pointed out the review will not begin until October and suggested the board could vote against the motion and he could bring it back in the fall.
The motion was defeated with two votes in favour, two against and one abstention.
The district’s transportation system is undergoing changes, which include a texting system that provides parents and guardians with real time updates in cases of bad weather and other issues.
Come fall there is a plan to roll out a swipe card system which will provide parents with data about students getting on and off the bus. The software will also provide the operations team with better data on ridership to help with routes.