Back-to-school 2021-2022 – Covid-19

As of the beginning of the new school year, all elementary and secondary students are required to wear procedural masks at all times while inside the school, that is, in class, at the daycare, in all common areas or when circulating within the school. This requirement does not apply to preschool students.

The main objective of these prevention measures is to protect students and staff members, while also reducing the risk of outbreaks and class closures. It should be noted that during heat waves, removing masks in classrooms will be permitted once everyone is seated at their assigned place.

The Direction générale de la santé publique has once again confirmed that there will be no requirements related to stable class groups for the back-to-school period.

Additionally, in order to provide consistency with the measures planned for college and university students, students in adult general education and vocational training are required to wear procedural masks at all times, including in class, regardless of region.

For information about the management of cases and outbreaks, especially with regard to how long a person exhibiting symptoms of COVID-19 should stay home and whether students and teachers in the same group should isolate, please consult the document by the Institut national de santé publique du Quebec (INSPQ), which can be found at www.inspq.qc.ca.

However, it should be noted that the regional public health authorities are responsible for managing these situations and for informing the institutions concerned. 

In elementary schools, extracurricular activities and sports will continue.

In secondary schools, students aged 13 and over are required to present their vaccination passport to participate in some extracurricular physical activities or sports.

The vaccination passport is also required to participate in interscholastic games, matches or competitions as part of specific sports programs and Sports-Etudes programs. The outdoor activities for which the vaccination passport is required are those involving frequent or prolonged contact. The vaccination passport is also be required for all indoor physical activities and sports.

We would also like to inform you that a guide outlining the main back-to-school guidelines is available  at https://www.quebec.ca/en/education/back-to-school-2021