Opinion: Is sleep deprivation among school going children worth it?

During the formidable fuel hike in prices that bit Uganda, I had to leave my car home opting for public transportation. I was at the stage at 5:45am to catch the first Pioneer Easy Bus coming from Namugongo.

On getting on the bus, the passengers were mainly pupils and students obviously making their way to school.

What caught my eye however with a lot of concern, was a young child of about 2-3 years old sleeping in the arms of his minder, occasionally woken up by chesty cough and then falling back asleep.

It was very early in the morning, when do these children go to sleep? What time do they wake up five days in the week to beat the traffic to be at school early?

What is this doing to their health, being exposed to such cold conditions every single day?

The main cause of children having to be on the road early in the morning could partly be blamed on the central regions crazy traffic jam that makes parents drop their children at school before the sun rises up so they can also reach their work places on time.

Mary Nakintu whose child is in Kampala Junior School, says she has to be in office at 7am, hence the need to leave home early.

Many times due to their bandwagon syndrome of school preferences, parents usually have to drive several kilometres, crossing from opposite parts of town to take their children to certain schools because well, they are best according to every other parent.

This they say they are comfortable with, because their children sleep throughout the journey from home to school and school to home every single day.

The traffic jam is not helped as many parents also don’t see the need to use school vans, every parent wants to drop their own children to school because the use of school buses usually hikes school fees, which are already unreasonable especially in Kampala Schools.

Joseph Sekasi, who resides past Nakwero on Kayunga road with children studying at Kabojja International School in Kampala says, “I have no problem with the children waking up at 4am everyday and  leaving home every morning at 5am.

I have fully stocked my car with pillows and blankets to allow for the children to catch up on some sleep as we head out to school.”

He says taking his children to school that early is grooming them into responsible citizens.

So while you may think that you grooming over achievers by supporting their deprivation of sleep, here is what you are actually doing to your children.

Studies reveal that in general, children need sleep than the 7 to 9 hours recommended for adults.

However, its estimated that 10% of children now have sleep issues.

A continued lack of the recommended time of sleep will lead to underachievement at school , depression and three times more likely to have school grades of C or lower and learning problems.

So while your excuse may be that you need to beat the traffic jam to get your children to school on time, start thinking of ways of putting the welfare of the children first.

If it would mean finding schools that are nearer to your home or transport sharing with neighbours whose children go the same schools as yours would be the first steps in the right direction towards allowing the children enjoy  their childhood without losing sleep.