This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies. Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: Wildfires ravaging the Indonesian part of Borneo are choking communities as far away as Malaysia with putrid haze, testing the resources and resolve of those who must endure it. Blamed partly on one of the worst episodes of the drought-inducing El Niño weather phenomenon in decades, the disaster threatens millions of people's access to necessities such as clean water and air—even education.
Here is the situation from the perspective of three community leaders in Indonesia's West Kalimantan province, one of the worst-affected regions: Syarifah Hatifah, the 57-year-old vice principal of a junior high school in Pontianak, the provincial capital, fears some of her nearly 600 pupils may be falling behind. They are in the third week of the second school closure this fire season. It's the longest closure Syarifah can remember in her 30-year career.
Hundreds of schools have been closed indefinitely in West Kalimantan because of air pollution, with about 200,000 pupils learning from home, according to the provincial education ministry. The kids are being kept home for their health, Syarifah told in a classroom empty but for two teachers presenting classes online, both with dozens of pupils scattered across their screens. "The hope is that at home, in terms of health, they can be protected ... because they are inside the house.
They don't have to go through roads full of dust and smoke," she said. But Syarifah said not every child has stable internet or access to a computer, making live sessions difficult for some. "Sometimes ... there is a power outage at their home, or they forget to charge their phones," and some students live in faraway areas with patchy connectivity, she said.
The school's teachers have been showing up every day as usual, giving lessons online in classrooms with no air purifiers. They work maskless so students can understand them clearly. Syarifah said the school would offer extra lessons for free once in-person learning resumes.
"We hope that this haze will pass quickly. Usually after the rain falls, the haze will disappear," she said. West Kalimantan's wet season usually starts around October or November.
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