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Each day, a number of children rise as early as 4.30 to get to school on time. PREETI KANNAN travels on a school bus from Sharjah to Dubai, only to discover this is no joyride
It is dark, cold and windy at 4.45am when bus drivers arrive on the
Cambridge International School’s premises and the buses part ways to
pick up students from Dubai , Sharjah and Ajman.
“It is so early and the traffic has already begun to swell. It is going
to be a tough ride back to school, especially in the rain,” observes
our driver Tahir Gul, eyeing the stream of cars piling up on the
Ittihad Road to Dubai on Sunday morning, even as a sudden heavy drizzle
catches motorists unaware.
The ride to Sharjah is quick and smooth since roads are clear, but the road back tells a different story.
Huddled together in the chill, rain-coated children and parents wait in
the dark in several corners as the bus makes its way through the wet by
lanes of Sharjah. Groggy-eyed, young faces with drooping shoulders wait
listlessly at their stops for the bus to pick them up. A couple of
eleventh graders are the first to board the bus, choosing the back
seats for some warmth.
Dragging their feet and heavier school bags, the bus slowly fills up with students as young as four and as old as 15.
Four centuries later, William Shakespeare’s famous lines from As You
Like It –“The whining school-boy, with his satchel and shining morning
face, creeping like snail, unwillingly to school,” still holds true.
Helping the smaller kids in to their seats, bus conductor, Mohammed
Shabir, ensures they have all buckled themselves, despite protests to
do otherwise.
“I wake up by 4.30 am to get ready for school since I am the oldest
sibling,” quips Sarah Harith, an Iraqi student, rather
enthusiastically. “I live in Sharjah and the only way I will make it on
time to school is by waking up really early,” says Harith, seated
comfortably with her friends.
“I really hate waking up at this hour. Some days, I am so tired that it
takes a lot of effort to get out of bed. It could be the traffic or
even because I studied the whole day that waking up becomes harder,”
says Zahraa Haider, a Canadian student, adding, “All of us hate Sundays
but love Thursdays. On weekends, we simply hibernate and wake up only
by 2 or 3 in the afternoon.”
Ayesha Anas, a fourth grader, observes that the darkness compounds the
morning woes. “It is always dark when we board the bus; besides, it’s
cold every morning,” she says, sighing that the onset of winter could
only make the task harder.
Some students concede that rising this early makes them sleepy and they do occasionally nod off during classes.
Several stops and more pick-ups later, driver Tahir gears himself to
face the traffic, which is inching slowly towards Dubai. Inside the
bus, the chatter slowly dies down as students, mostly older, turn to
Ipods for some relief, to get through the traffic. Some even cram in
homework and other lessons. Mostly, they catch up on their lost sleep
during the over two-hour ride.
Students aren’t the only early birds sitting through the gruelling trip
to school since faculty, who reside in Sharjah, face the same
predicament. “The irritation levels of teachers increase sometimes
because of lesser sleeping hours,” notes Bilal Zaidi, a Math, Economics
and Business Studies teacher at the school, adding, “Students are also
under tremendous stress and become less attentive in class. Perhaps in
junior classes, students do fall asleep during school. However,
whenever I ask students the reason behind their exhaustion, they
attribute it mostly to their late sleeping habits.”
Zaidi says exertion aggravates the problem as students become less attentive to lessons.
Hailing from Pakistan, he says he couldn’t believe it earlier when his
sister, a resident of Sharjah, used to tell him they have to begin
their day at an untimely hour. “Now, I am used to it and I listen to
old Hindi songs on the bus. I have my laptop to keep me company too,”
he remarks.
After manoeuvring through the rain, the countless cars and congested
roads, the bus finally arrives at school a little after 7.25. With half
an hour o go for the bell, students hang around, catch up with friends
and even indulge a little in sports before they begin the actual part
of their day.
They head back by about 2 in the afternoon and this time the ride back
home is relatively shorter and faster, reaching in less than an hour.
Once they are back, the agenda is to eat, do some homework and almost
always catch a nap, watch and probably even play.
Many say they go to bed very early because of fatigue and mostly to begin yet another school day.
If Only I had Wings...
Adham Ahmed Rashwan, a 12-year-old Egyptian student at the Cambridge
International School, says he sometimes wishes there were secret
buttons he could press and they could fly over the traffic to school.
“Or, it would be nicer if a helicopter took me to school,” he says.
The Grade VII student, who dotes on football, wakes up by 5 to catch
his 5.40 school bus every day. Like most children, he detests the
morning routine that includes waking up to school.
“I sometimes feel I am not ready to go to school. But once I am on the
bus, I listen to my Ipod and even go to sleep. One day I fell asleep
nearly three times in one of my classes, though for just a few
minutes,” he says, while attributing it to exhaustion.
A sports buff, Adham says, “I do not mind staying back after school to
play football since I love the game.” Home by usually 3pm, he finishes
lunch and sometimes heads for an afternoon siesta, before studying.
Adham’s parents concede the early start does tire their son.
“Definitely, he gets exhausted, especially since the children have to
wake up at least three hours before school. However, playing some
sports like basketball or football before the start of school gets them
excited,” says Ahmed Hamdi, his father. “We do feel bad for the
children. After any vacation, it is even harder for them to get up in
the mornings,” he adds.
“My concern is he cannot sleep early because he has to do his homework.
He is also learning Karate and has to practise regularly. I usually
come back late from work and he stays awake to see me. That is very
tough for me. It hurts me every day when I wake him so early,” says
Salwa Elmeniawy, his mother.
Adham, when studying in Egypt, used to leave home by 7am to reach his school at 8.
However, the family’s lifestyle has undergone a drastic change in
schedule since they moved to the UAE. His mother adds that she often
notices her son looking very tired.
Schools Should Start at 9, Says Expert
Experts concede that the long ride and early mornings are bound to take
a toll on a child’s health and development. From waning attention spans
to improper nutrition, the repercussions are manifold, they warn.
“Children become less attentive in class and if they do not sleep
early, that will also affect them,” says Dr Saeed, Group Medical
Director for Dr Moopen’s Group.
“Children should be sent to schools closest to their home. Since that
its not possible in this part of the world, sleeping as early as 8 is
ideal. Early to bed and early to rise should be the norm. Parents
should also ensure children have a balanced diet with proteins,
carbohydrates and fat,” he added.
Dr. Onita Nakra, a Dubai-based educational psychologist, observes that
no matter how old a child is, being stuck inside a vehicle is no fun.
“A youngster needs to enjoy some time playing in the fresh air but
children in Dubai rarely get to breathe oxygen. They move from the
school bus to the babysitter to the house,” she adds.
“The effects of a long commute on young children are negative and
accumulative. It takes a heavy physical toll on children and this is
seen in their lack of concentration and attention in the classrooms,”
says Nakra.
The solution, Nakra believes, could be in changing school timings.
“Schools need to seriously consider changing their timing to 9a.m.
There is a lot of research that shows that children who get at least
8-10 hours of sleep at night perform better. Parents also should look
for schools in their immediate neighbourhood,” she says, adding that in
most countries the concept of neighbourhood schools allows children to
walk to school.
“Dubai should have adhered to this model, instead of insisting schools
should be relocated far from residential areas. Every residential
development should have its own school. The school could then function
as a community centre where children can stay back to engage in after
school activities. Written petitions to the government may help to
bring about some of these changes but the future looks bleak,” observes
the psychologist.
Source: Khaleejtimes
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