More Ontario schools reopen to in-person learning today

More of Ontario’s schools are reopening to in-person learning.

Students in 13 public health units, including Hamilton, Niagara and Halton, will return to physical classrooms on Monday.

In three COVID-19 hot spots of Toronto, Peel and York Region, schools will remain closed until Feb. 16.

All students in Ontario began January with online learning as part of a provincial lockdown.

The province then took a staggered approach to reopening schools, allowing those in northern Ontario and rural areas to resume in-person learning first.

Education Minister Stephen Lecce says the government is taking a number of steps to enhance safety in schools, such as more stringent screening for those in high school and asymptomatic testing across the province.