Families in Tebedu should prepare for home-based learning on Monday, Oct 26: 27 schools will close because of haze, while face-to-face classes for SPM candidates will continue with masks. The Sarawak Education Department’s Oct 25 statement, reported by Bernama, covers one secondary and 26 primary schools. Teachers and support staff may work from home during the closure. The instruction also extends to primary and secondary schools in districts recording Air Pollutant Index readings above 200 after the statement. It is not a blanket closure of every school in Sarawak. Institutions are to monitor readings through the Department of Environment’s APIMS portal. Parents who are concerned about the haze may keep their children at home, provided they inform the school. For families with SPM candidates, the continued face-to-face arrangement is the important exception to check with their school. Schools can prepare to reopen when readings show a downward trend below 200. That condition is not an announcement that Tebedu schools will automatically reopen on Tuesday.

Schools under the Serian, Sri Aman and Lubok Antu district education offices will switch to home-based learning on October 14, but three scheduled assessments and examinations will continue. The Sarawak Education Department's October 13 statement, reported by The Borneo Post, orders the temporary closure of all primary and secondary schools under the three offices because of haze. Teachers and support staff may work from home. The exceptions are the Special School Entry Assessment (PKSK), Malaysian Higher Religious Certificate examination (STAM) and the Primary 6 Dual Language Programme assessment (UP-DLPS 6). The closure notice is therefore not a cancellation notice for candidates sitting those assessments. Families in the affected districts should follow their school's specific instructions for home-based learning and examination arrangements. JPN Sarawak says further assessment instructions are on its official Facebook page. The general closure notice does not replace those candidate-specific instructions. The closure is specifically for October 14 in the named districts, not a blanket shutdown of all Sarawak schools. The federal education minister separately confirmed the three districts in a statement reported by Bernama through DayakDaily on October 13.

A total of 142 schools in Serian and Lundu are closed today as haze readings remain in the very unhealthy range. The temporary closure took effect on Thursday, Sept 24: 108 schools in Serian and 34 in Lundu. At 10am, the Air Pollutant Index stood at 212 in Serian and 225 in Lundu. The Sarawak Education Department said the decision follows Education Ministry Circular No. 8 of 2016 on managing lessons during disasters. For schools near areas above API 200, principals and head teachers may consider home-based learning after weighing pupils’ health and safety. The notice gives no reopening date. Families should check with their own school for the day’s learning arrangements. If readings trend down, schools may begin preparing to reopen, but that is not a confirmed timetable.

Haze is keeping 591 Sarawak schools closed on Aug 21. The Sarawak Education Department said the temporary closure took effect on Aug 20 and will continue tomorrow, Aug 21, after unhealthy Air Pollutant Index (API) readings were recorded at 3pm. The order affects 509 primary schools with 107,590 pupils and 82 secondary schools with 89,733 students. The 10 affected district education offices cover Kuching, Padawan, Bau, Lundu, Samarahan, Simunjan, Serian, Sri Aman, Lubok Antu and Betong. Schools have been told to monitor readings through the Department of Environment's APIMS system and follow Ministry of Health advice. Any further update will be announced by the department. Because these readings are tied to 2026-08-20, parents should check the latest APIMS update and their school's notice before making plans for attendance or outdoor activities. A reopening is not a permanent all-clear if the API rises again. [image: 1787220315028-haze-chimon-20260820.jpg]