BACHOK: The Community Development Department (Kemas) is giving parents the leeway to not send their children to kindergartens and nurseries during the current hot spell, says its director-general Ahmad Kamal Idris Mohd Nawawi.
He said his department had issued instructions to all teachers since April 27 under Administrative Instruction No. 7 involving kindergartens and nurseries across the country.
"This instruction affects 10,800 kindergartens and 550 nurseries with 218,000 children enrolled for education under Kemas throughout the country.
"For the sake of children’s safety, we are also prepared to consider the immediate closure of kindergartens and nurseries if the temperature reaches 40 degrees Celsius or above,” he said.
He told reporters this after the Kelantan state-level “Jom Masuk Kampung” programme to educate villagers on government policies in Kampung Kubang Telaga here today (May 18).
Ahmad Kamal Idris said a guideline was issued for teachers to constantly monitor temperatures, and they are allowed to cancel activities for pupils outside the classroom if it hits 35 to 37 degrees Celsius.
"In terms of ventilation, classrooms do not have air-conditioning and even if there is, it is not able to cope with the hot weather. So, teachers are asked to open the windows.
"If the temperature level is 37 to 40 degrees Celsius, we have given instructions and guidelines for classes involving two- to eight-year-old children to be closed,” he said.
He said so far, Kemas had received several reports from kindergartens and nurseries in Kelantan, Johor and other states regarding the hot weather situation, but the situation was not alarming.
He said Kemas would continue to monitor the situation and report to the relevant authorities if necessary. - Bernama
