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Changes to COVID-19 case reporting

Tue, 11 Jan, 2022

As students return to classes this week, we remain committed to sharing timely information with families about COVID-19 cases in schools.

CHANGES TO TRACKING COVID-19 CASES

Recently, the province announced changes to the way schools are notified about outbreaks and positive COVID-19 cases. 

We no longer expect to receive regular updates from Alberta Health Services. We also know that the province is moving away from offering PCR tests to all Albertans, and is encouraging families to use at-home rapid tests to determine if they have COVID-19. This makes it difficult to get a clear picture of case numbers in our schools and classrooms.

NEW ONLINE TOOL FOR FAMILIES

To help parents understand what’s happening in our schools, we will report on the number of students absent due to general illness or self-reported cases of COVID-19. Families can now view COVID-19 cases and student absence data for their child’s school on epsb.ca. This information will be updated every weekday and display student absence rates up to the previous day.

The online tool will replace letters that were previously provided to a classroom and school. We hope this online tool will help families stay informed of trends at their child’s school. 

WHAT TO DO IF YOUR CHILD IS SICK

If your child tests positive for COVID-19, by a rapid test or PCR test, we encourage you to let your school know. This will help our schools accurately track overall illness data in their classrooms. No personal information about your child or their reason for absence will be shared publicly.

MORE INFORMATION

Learn more about our health and safety measures and read a letter from Superintendent Darrel Robertson.