A study was done in the United States, and I think we can draw on it since it may apply to the problems we have in the same area here.
The pandemic set our young children's reading and writing skills back 20 years. Good reading skills from the start of primary school are the most significant factor enabling children to do well in school and earn their diplomas.
That's an aspect that must be addressed. That's why I discussed “educational” health in addition to physical and psychological health. We now have children in grade two or three who didn't go to school during the pandemic. They've experienced interruptions since their education started.
That's an example of the unique nature of a province. I'm extremely concerned that, as a result of the COVID‑19 pandemic measures, children in Ontario can still choose not to go to school. We feel that attendance at school, without negotiation or compromise, is extremely important because it's their reading, writing and numeracy skills that will enable them to improve their educational trajectory. This is what was done in Quebec when students went back to school for the first time in the spring of 2020. It wasn't a choice. The children had to go to school unless there was some major health problem.
We know that school attendance is an extremely important health parameter for educational skills and the social safety net that the school system represents. It's an environment for growth that can't always be offered at home for certain children.