Just two weeks before the start of the new school year, the Ontario government, led by Doug Ford, announced several changes to what students will be learning and when.

From larger class sizes to cannabis, cyber-safety, bullying and sex-education, it means new challenges for teachers and administrators.

The new curriculum is a 318 page document and it lists new guidelines for a number of subjects and when they are to be taught.

Norm Blaseg is the director of education for Rainbow District School Board.

"From grades one to grade eight , we are now going to be introducing concussions. That is something we have not addressed in the past, so that is really interesting. Bullying, we are adding that to several grades, so that is something that is new and is quite relevant," said Blaseg.

The school board official says the curriculum requires school boards to allow parents to exempt children from lessons on sexual health and human development if they wish.

"We, as the boards, are responsible for ensuring that we have to give them 20-days notice of when we are going to be endeavouring into the sex-ed content. Parents will have up until five days up until the initial start of that sex-ed curriculum being applied and they can request an exemption," said Blaseg.

The union representing 650 elementary teachers in Sudbury, Espanola and Manitoulin Island is critical of how the provincial government is steering education.

Barb Blasutti is the president of the Rainbow Teacher Local, a branch of Elementary Teachers Federation of Ontario. She is skeptical of the recent parent consultation process undergone by the Ford government.

"They have apparently done this extensive consultation process, where they have allegedly surveyed the people of Ontario, but they refuse to share results. We don’t know who they surveyed and say based on that they are making changes," said Blasutti.

The local union president also says the curriculum changes are coming late and are making it difficult and hectic for teachers.

"Teachers are left scrambling. Things like a new curriculum announcements two weeks before the start of a school year, with no professional development to assist that," said Blasutti.

The Rainbow District School Board says it plans to provide professional development training to teachers involving the new curriculum and it will develop exemption procedures by the end of November.