KUPANG: Every morning in a city in Indonesia’s far east, sleepy teenagers can be seen strolling the streets like zombies on their way to school.
This is not a scene from an exciting sci-fi offering, but a controversial experiment for sleep-deprived teenagers to pre-start the day.
Grade 12 students in 10 high schools in the pilot project in Kapang, the capital of East Nusa Tenggara province, start classes at 5:30 a.m.
Officials say the scheme, announced last month by Governor Victor Lescudt, aims to strengthen the discipline of children.
According to parents, though, their kids are “exhausted” by the time they get home. Schools in Indonesia usually start between 7:00 am and 8:00 am.
Teenagers in their school uniforms are now walking down dark streets or waiting for motorcycle taxis to get to school on time.
“It’s very difficult, they have to leave the house now while it’s still dark. I can’t accept that… their safety is not guaranteed when it’s dark and quiet,” said Rambu Atta, a 16-year-old mother. . Old man, said AFP.
Her daughter Eureka now has to get up at 4:00 a.m. to ride her bike to school.
“Now whenever she gets home, she is tired and falls asleep immediately because she is very sleepy,” Atta said.
At least one scholar seems to agree.
“It has nothing to do with efforts to improve the quality of education,” Marcel Robot, an academic at Nusa Sandana University, told AFP.
In the long run, sleep deprivation can endanger students’ health and cause behavioral changes, he said.
“They will only sleep for a few hours and this is a serious threat to their health. It will also cause them stress and they will act out their stress.”
Policy extension
A 2014 study published by the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that middle and high school students start classes at 8:30 a.m. or later to allow enough time for sleep.
Kupang’s rule change was also challenged by local lawmakers, who called on the government to revoke it as an unfounded policy.
Despite criticism, the government has maintained its experiment and extended it to the local educational institution, where civil servants now also start their day at 5:30 in the morning.
Not everyone is unhappy with the policy.
Rancy Cecilia Pelokella, a civil servant at the agency, told AFP that starting earlier had made her healthier because she now has to join group exercise sessions in her office where she used to sleep.
“As a public servant I am ready to comply with the code and I will do my best,” Pelokela said.