School reopening: Perak to decide on Monday, after haze readings tomorrow afternoon

IPOH: The Perak Education Department will announce tomorrow afternoon whether schools in the state will reopen on Monday, based on the latest Air Pollutant Index (API) readings.

State Education, Higher Education, Youth and Sports Committee chairman Datuk Khairudin Abu Hanipah said readings will be assessed between 2pm and 3pm tomorrow before a decision is made.

He said schools in districts recording unhealthy air quality would be closed to safeguard the health and well-being of students and staff.

"For Monday's school session, the API readings will be taken on Sunday. If any districts continue to record unhealthy API levels, school closures will certainly be implemented.

"What matters most is ensuring the safety and well-being of students in the affected districts," he said.

He told reporters after representing the Perak Menteri Besar at the state-level National Sports Day celebration at the Perak Youth and Sports Complex in Jalan Ghazali Jawi, here today.

About 5,000 people attended the event.

Khairudin said the move followed the Perak Education Department's decision to close schools in three districts yesterday after API readings exceeded 180.

The closures affected schools under the Kinta Utara, Kinta Selatan and Kuala Kangsar district education offices.

He said the department had assured that students' learning would continue uninterrupted despite the closures, particularly through home-based teaching and learning (PdPR).

He added that the department had drawn up plans to ensure students could continue their lessons from home and keep up with the school syllabus.

Yesterday, state Education director Zulkafli Mohamed Mokhtar announced the closure of all educational institutions under the three district education offices following an API reading of 180 at the monitoring station in Tasek here at 11am.

During the closure period, teachers and members of the support staff, known as the Implementing Group, would work from home, subject to current directives and operational requirements.

Zulkafli also urged parents and guardians to follow official announcements from the Perak Education Department for updates, particularly on when schools and educational institutions would reopen.

As of today, four locations in Perak had recorded unhealthy API readings, with Tasek, Ipoh recording 176, followed by Pegoh, Ipoh (172), Tanjung Malim (169) and Seri Manjung (156).

The Education Ministry has stipulated that all educational institutions under its purview in areas recording API readings above 180 must close from Oct 9.

Institutions in areas recording API readings above 150 for three consecutive days must also close from Oct 12.