About 130 Parkdale students will continue to study in three-grade split classrooms, while a committee tries to find alternative solutions.
Students in Grades 4, 5 and 6 at Parkdale Public School were combined into a single classroom on Monday, and upset parents met with school staff and trustee Irene Atkinson on Thursday evening to request a change.
Split classrooms are usually the result of declining enrolments. However, Parkdale saw a spike in enrolment, and in an effort to accommodate students and satisfy Ministry of Education-mandated class sizes, staff decided to try this new arrangement.
Irene Atkinson, the trustee for the school, said the majority of parents at the meeting were "vehemently opposed" to the combined classroom.
"I don't agree with the three-grade split," she said. "There is absolutely no precedent at the Toronto District School Board for this. The only other time it happened was at a small alternative school, because of low enrolments."
She said the superintendent for the school informed her a letter will be sent out on Friday to all parents, inviting them to serve on a committee to find alternative models.
"It's like our kids are involved in some kind of experiment," said Goran, a parent who didn't want his last name used. His son Kosta is a Grade 4 student in the three-way split class. "It makes absolutely no sense."