School year to start Jan 5

Students will go back to school on Jan 5 in all states next year except for Kedah, Kelantan and Terengganu, where classes start a day earlier.

There will be an extra school day next year making it 208, compared to this year (which has 207 school days).

Students will have 77 days of holidays in 2009, which is seven days less than in 2008.
An Education Ministry official explained that there is no mistake to the start of the last term on Aug 31 (in the second term).

She said the ministry counts it as the start of the school week although it happens to fall on National Day.

“Students will actually start the term on Sept 1 but we look at the start of the week which happens to fall on Aug 31,” she said when contacted.

Schools can apply for cuti peristiwa (occasional holidays), which need not be replaced, or for cuti ganti (replacement holidays) for an extended break during the festive seasons.