Lateness is the act of coming, arriving or remaining after due, usual, or proper time. Lateness according to the school context is where by students arrive or come to school late which goes contrarily against the schools’ rules.

There are number of reasons that account to the lateness of children to class. Some of them are the reasons are as follows:

Improper time management: students may postpone their assignments and home works late in the night, others even do those tasks in the morning before coming to class, others also play computer games and cartoons, interacting on the social media, as a results, they sleep very late I the night so they cannot wake up early to prepare to school. Nakpodia and Dafiaghor 2011 stated in their book “lateness” that school administrators must lead by example. They should be punctual in their own meetings and classes to avoid students to think that being late is just alright since even authoritative persons are doing it. Oghoubu (2008), “causes of the lateness among the secondary students”, going late to bed because of watching films and homes movies resulting into waking up late in the morning.

Some students also come to class late due to delay of their transports. Students who have contracts with drivers may be delayed to school due to improper schedule of the driver, others who come on their own but learning on a very far distance may find it difficult to get transport or car on time to school which made them late to class. According to CAESC 2007 and Zeiger 2010 the most essential learning time of the day for the students lies in the morning.

The high and persistence traffic jams on our road. Most of our roads especially in big towns and cities are always cluster with traffic jams which delay students to get to class in time.

Bad nature of some roads and route to some schools: Most of the roads leading to various schools are in deplorable conditions, pot holes and have taken the center stage, so cars taking student to these schools in the rural areas delays on the road, most of the roads are also not tarred so it makes drivers faces challenges in driving smoothly to convey students to school on time.

Lack of motivation by some teachers: Teachers who teaches without motivating students either intrinsically or extrinsically makes the class bored, so students may try to avoid his lesson especially when that teacher have morning session.

Also, a teacher who lacks methodology in teaching always makes his lessons monotonous, a classroom must be conducive and lively for learning and suitable methods, learning materials catch the attention and readiness of the students. So when the students are always bent on one or same method always they decides to boycott your classes by coming to school in order escape that lesson.

If the rules in a school is not reinforce: Every school has rules governing it, but if those rules are dormant or inoperative, students capitalize on that to come to school late. The non-enforcement of the rules have make the teachers and authorities of the school to act like toothless bull dog, which barks but cannot bit, so when students got to know about that, they also uses the weakness of the rules and dance to their own tune by reporting to class late.

Students who walk on foot to school: Students who walk from long distance to school especially in the rural areas may always end up been late to classes. In the rural areas some students walk about 20kmlometer and above before they reach their various schools, so this enhances their late coming.

Illiteracy of some parents

Some parents does not bother or concern about the academic ware fare of their wards, they don’t care either their children wake-up early and bath to school or make follow ups to see if their wards really go to school or pass somewhere, before going to school or does not go to school at all, because of illiteracy among some parents. So this children, when they notice that, they have been ignored by their parents may tent to go to school any time of the as it pleases him/her.

The society or the school can lay down positive measures to prevent all these excuses and reason as pertaining to their lateness.

Parents should advice their children to go to bed on time

Parents should make sure that they supervise their children to do their assignments and home works early in the day, so that they can go to bed in time in order to have enough sleep to wake up early the next day for school in time. Again, parents should not allow their children to spend most of tier time in the evening playing games, watch movies and chatting on social media as they delay them to sleep early, so that they can have the strength to wake up on time and prepare to school.

Parents should make proper arrangement for transport to carry their children to school in time. They should make the drivers whom they have sign contract with, to go by their time to prevent any delay and lateness to school.

Children should prepare and organize and plan in the night before the next day. They should wash, dry and iron their uniform during the day and hang them at a place they can easily see them in the morning to prevent any delay. Children should pack their books or assignments or home works in their bag during the night before they go to bed so that they do not forget or worry to search for them in the morning. Children should set an alarm clock in the night before they sleep so that, it can aid you to wake up early.

Teachers should use motivational tools during and after teaching.

Intrinsic motivation such as clapping of hands for a student who get question correct, using words such as “Good, Very Good, excellent, genius, perfect when a student answer questions correctly, these make the class lively and student will always rash to class of such a teacher who uses those words.

Also the schools authorities can use some extrinsic motivations such as prizes and for rewards students who come early to schools, it could be I a form of certificates, for first fifty students that come to school early in a week or semester, end or term or semester parties for those who report to class on time, coupons to eat or attend educative programs interesting places. These will encourage others who come late to also follow suit.

Parents Teachers Association should organize and pull their resources together to buy a bus for school.

The PTA should contribute a quota to buy a school bus, so that it can convey student from their various destination to school in time to prevent the issue of students not getting car in time to school and those who walk very far distance to school.