Later School Start Times “About 90% of the teens, problem is insufficient sleep” (Dr. Chen), most of the adolescents are suffering of sleep deprived which is unabling them to be healthy and pay attention in class. Many of the schedules that are given in schools are the worst for teens because one one the things they require them to do is to wake up early to attend to the classes. Middle and High School start times should start later because it will benefit students academic growth, and improve health . Starting school times later will make teen have an academic growth. Starting school later could help teens academically because, they would be more attentive to any work or test that comes their way.
Having later start times can benefit kids in many ways such as improving their grades. When schools have later start times, students can wake up later and be more awake leading to them being more attentive in class and getting better grades. Researcher Finley Edwards “Found that math scores improved by 2 percentile points and reading scores by 1 point in middle schools that moved to a later start time.” Students might end up being tired in class because they didn't sleep long enough the night before leading to them not learning in class that may result in worse grades that the student is capable. Students grades and staying on task can be improved by having schools start later.
If school starts later kids could get more sleep and if kids get more sleep they’re less likely to develop bad health issues. In fact, middle school should start later.
In the book “Should the School Day Start Later?'' , it says “They have a hard time focusing on tasks and remembering facts for tests. If the school day started later, students would be able to get more rest”(Lawrence, 16). So, it is easy to understand the importance of later start times because more sleep leads to better concentration. When students have a better concentration and focus on the lesson, they have high test and assignment scores.
When kids are tired, their grades are usually worse than other kids. They don’t think straight or they just mess up. It would be better if school just started after 8:30. There are studies that early is better too. But there are more for later being better.
Lisa Lewis, author of “Why School Should Start Later in the Day” states that “Repeated studies show that when the school day starts later and teens get more sleep, both grades and standardized test scores go up. A Colby College economist, Finley Edwards, found that a one-hour delay in start time increased math test and reading test scores by three percentile points. Even more striking, the lowest-scoring students showed the biggest jumps” (Lewis 1). To add on to students test scores and grades rising, a later start time can give them the needed time to finish up homework. Sports and activities at night can make finding time for homework hard for students.
School start time and its effect on students has been an issue that many teachers and parents have argued over for many years. In districts all throughout the country, elementary, middle, and high schools start classes around different times, commonly making high schools begin their classes the earliest. The current standard start time for most schools is between 7-9 am, with some starting even earlier. This day-to-day schedule has been deeply rooted into the mind of many students for as long as they can remember with many believing that any type of change to this schedule would not benefit students or their studies. However, some experts argue that starting school later would have positive effects on both the physical and mental health of
She cites a study that found that students who start school later have higher grades and test scores than those who start earlier. Additionally, students who get more sleep are more likely to be engaged in class and retain information better. By allowing students to get the sleep they need, schools can help them perform better academically and set them up for success in the future. Thirdly, Snyder provides examples of schools that have successfully implemented later start times and seen positive results.
According to “Should Schools Start Later?” by Junior Scholastic, “A later start, say opponents, also interferes with some teens part time jobs” (Scholastic 21). If schools start later, it would interfere with the teens work schedule. This would then cause the teens to be early on their shift and mess up a lot of people, which could result in them getting fired from their job. If schools stayed to the usual time schedule it would not cause any mix ups or confusion.
Many people argue whether school start times should stay the same or become later in the day. Most students already don't get enough sleep during the night and that can affect their learning experience in school (Wahlstrom). However some positive effects can still come from waking up early in the morning and getting to school around the same time. Although good can come from waking up early in the morning and sleeping in, students still need later school starting times to improve their overall health.
“Sleep is that golden chain that ties health and our bodies together,” (Thomas Dekker), but with most middle and high schools starting before 8:00 am, students aren’t getting the recommended hours of sleep they need to do well in school. School start times should be later for middle and high schoolers for the protection of students’ academic scores, the reduced risk of traffic accidents, and for the protection of student health, although people may argue that parent work schedules may have to change and that the bus schedule change may or will be costly. Middle and high schools should start later for the positive impacts they would have on students and their families. First of all, the start times of middle and high schools should be later for the protection of students’ academic scores. Students who don’t get enough sleep get lower academic and standardized test scores.
Starting school later can actually improve your learning, health and even your attitude and all of that can be changed by just starting school at 8:30AM. Kids don't start taking in information until 8:30AM because that is when the brain starts to really work. According to National sleep foundation ¨ teenagers are naturally inclined to stay up later and get up later in the morning.¨ ¨Starting school at 8:30 improves a student's chance of success,¨ according to the (National sleep foundation). Not only do teens want to sleep more, but sleeping more actually improves their health.
And it helps students ability to learn. One reason school times should start later is because it will help students catch up on sleep. “Sleep deprivation has become virtually epidemic among American teenagers. Research suggests that adolescents require about 8.5 to 9 hours of sleep, but according to the National Sleep Foundation, only 14% achieve this goal.” said Julie Peorgers from The Brown University Child and Adolescent Behavior Letter. Not acquiring the recommended amount of sleep can have repercussion of the human body and brain.
One other reason why school should start later is because it is more convenient. In the first place it’s better for one’s health. In order for your body to grow and develop you have to get enough sleep. If you do not get enough sleep it will lower the immune system and increase one’s chances of getting ill.
According to the National Sleep Foundation, a nonprofit organization that promotes public understanding of sleep and sleep disorders, starting school later is an adequate way for students to have a better memory, behavior, attention, mood, and executive function. The National Sleep Foundation states “, A National Sleep Foundation poll reported that 28% of teenagers have fallen asleep in class at least once due to lack of sleep. Negative effects of sleep loss include impairments in mood, attention, memory, behavior and executive function… increase in caffeine use… sleep deprived-teens at higher risk of car accidents.” This means that by just adjusting the time by an hour students are more aware of their surroundings, more focused on what they’re learning, have a better mood, and executive function, and it reduces the amount of sugary snacks they have eat or drink to stay awake.
