Are you tired? Can you not seem to stay awake during class? Well, this is why school should start later. According to the Atlantic.com for the first time, the Federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is encouringing education policymakers to start middleschool and highschool classes later in the morning. This is happening because both teens and kids cannot seem to put their full potential forward academically and physically, while being sleep deficient. According to the Center for Disease control kids should get 8 to 10 hours of sleep each night. Both the CDC and National Pediatricians Group said that lack of sleep can lead to higher chances of obesity, and depression, and higher risk of car accidents in teens, as well as lower quality of life. Head of the CDC …show more content…
According to the Atlantic.com, in more than 40 states, at least 75% of schools start earlier than 8:30. Researchers in the University of Minnesota said that over 9,000 students from 8 different high schools in both Minnesota and Wyoming, found that shifting the school start time improved the students in many different ways. Such as, better attendance, higher test scores in all subjects, and a huge decrease in tardiness. Most importantly there was a decrease in teen car accidents. “Students are bordered on pathologically sleepy”said professor Carskadon. Carskadon and his group of researchers found out that students that showed up to the morning classes that start around 7:20 required the students to be awake at times which ran against their “ internal clocks”. More than half of the 10th grade students get less than 7 hours of sleep, which already below what is recommended. Medical writer Terra Snider explains why it is hard for schools to change. Getting school systems to change takes more than just scientific evidence, says Terra. Schools also are afraid of what the parents will say about timing and
It is true that sleep deprivation is a widespread issue, generally resulting from early start times. It is also a serious one; according to a study by Harvard Medical School, sleep deprivation can lead to issues such as obesity, heart disease, difficulty learning, and can genuinely shorten a person’s lifespan. As Robbins explains, teenagers have a different internal sleep clock than other age groups. It is most healthy for students in high school to go to bed around 11 and wake up around 9. Since school often begins as early as 7, students are told they simply need to go to bed early, around 8 or 9 PM. This contention does not take into account the fact that humans are biologically not wired this way, and it's virtually impossible for most teens to fall asleep this early. It also doesn't take into account that with clubs, sports, church, volunteering, other extracurriculars and hours of homework, students often struggle to start their homework before their suggested “bedtime”. It is contended that students can control their own schedules so that they can get more sleep. However, pressure from parents and peers to get into a “good” college can cloud students’ perceptions of what is right for them, making them choose to overwork themselves in order to build impressive resumes. I myself can identify with this phenomenon. During the weekdays alone, I volunteer two nights a
This leaves students with less than the recommended 9 hours of sleep. Students that have to stay up that late for homework will be tired in the morning, even if their school starts later. Many people argue that starting schools later will let students get more sleep and align with the students sleep cycles. But they do not factor in that students will just stay up later at night because they know that they do not have to get up as early in the morning. This will just leave students with less sleep than before.
According to the National Sleep Foundation, biological sleep patterns change throughout the stages of adolescence. ¨Biological sleep patterns shift toward later times for both sleeping and waking during adolescence-meaning it is natural to not be able to fall asleep before 11:00pm.¨ (¨Teens and Sleep¨). Messing with these sleep cycles in the long run and lead to sleep disorders. Research done by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggests teenagers 13-18 years old should regularly sleep 8-10 hours each night for a healthy sleep. The teens who do not get a good amount of sleep are more likely to suffer from mental conditions, smoking, illicit drugs, and alcohol use. ¨Not getting enough sleep is common among high school students and is associated with several health risks including being overweight, drinking alcohol, smoking tobacco, and using drugs, as well as poor academic performance.¨ (¨Schools Start Too Early¨). On an NBC news story, Hilton Head Island High School moved its start time and benefits were noticeable. Students had higher test score averages and grades improved throughout the school.A study done in 2008 published in the journal of clinical sleep, found car accident rates fell by 16.5% when students were more aware on the road, not having to wake up before 7 am.
Based on the article on The National Sleep Foundation, when it's time for school the average teen body still thinks it's the middle of the night.
Kids and teen everywhere are rushed, stressed, and not doing as well in school because they aren't getting the right amount of sleep. About 40% of american high schools start classes before 8:00 am and more than 20% of middle schools start at 7:45 am or earlier. School start times should be later because teens need sleep and it improves their overall academic grades.
If school started later, kids wouldn’t be so tired in the morning. School starting later is very beneficial because kids wouldn’t sleep so much in class. Students need a total of 8-10 hours of sleep on school days to be awake in the morning. 33% of teens report falling asleep in class every day. 73% of high school students get fewer than 8 hours of sleep on school nights, with 46% of middle school students getting barely 7 hours of sleep.
One of the many arising problems of America’s students is they are becoming sleep deprived. The busy daily schedules of children and teens are not allowing them to get enough sleep. “Less sleep is unhealthy especially with the new research that as teenagers move through teenage years, they need increasing amounts of sleep. Nine hours per night is the necessary amount to avoid behaviors associated with sleep deprivation” (Final Report Summary, 2001). Among other things, sleep deprivation is causing students to sleep during class instead of being awake and aware. When the students are sleeping in class, they are not retaining information being taught to them. Researchers have now proven that the majority of adolescents retain more information later in the day. Contrary to this information, America’s school systems are programmed to begin early in the day, which according to the sleep rhythms of most teenagers, they should still be sleeping.
Starting school later also has a lot of health and academical benefits. Even if the school day starts 30 minutes later, It has proven to show great benefits for teenagers. In the pass Up For Debate: Should School Start Later It says “As a result, students were showing up to school alert and ready to learn and are focused and engaged in lessons.” Some people believe that starting earlier is better because a later start results in a later end to the day. But changing it to a later time will still give kids enough time to sleep and get their work
“Sleep deprivation is epidemic among adolescents, with potentially serious impacts on mental and physical health, safety, and learning. Most teenagers undergo a biological shift to a later sleep-wake up cycle, which can make early school start times particularly challenging.” says Boergers.
Teens are recommended to get 8 to 10 hours of sleep per night to be able to function to the best of their ability. A study found that only 15% of teens receive 8.5 hours on school night. According to the CDC, “Five out of six middle and high schools in the United States start the school day too early.” Most high schools start before 8:30 A.M. High schools starting too early in the morning can cause high school students to not get their necessary amount of sleep. Lack of sleep can cause harmful health effects. Not getting enough sleep can cause behavior effects such as aggressiveness and impulsivity. Not getting enough sleep can also cause you to overeat, which can lead to unhealthy weight gain. Changing the start time of high schools can assure high school students with their appropriate amount of
Does school start too early? Many believe it does. Children simply can’t learn correctly waking up early. Some people may disagree, but I do not. Here’s why school should start early.
Don't you hate waking up early for school in the morning? Most high school students wake up before the sun rises just to become ready for school. Teenage brains do not begin to function that early considering many are tired from staying up late the previous night. The National Sleep Foundation reported that most teens do not retain enough shuteye, one study found that only 15% reported sleeping eight 1/2 hours on school nights. That fact was extremely true for me when I attended high school. I barely was able to wake up, get dressed, and be in school on time since I was so tired. In my opinion school days should start later, precisely in between 9- 10 o'clock. If the school day started later attendance would improve, students will be more prepared, and student's attitudes and grades may improve.
When children make the transition from primary school to middle school or high school, it affects them a lot when the changing of their own sleep cycle affects the way they actually learn. Dr. Judith Owens, who is the director of the Sleep Medicine Clinic at Children's National Medical Center in Washington, D.C., says "adolescents are programmed to fall asleep later,” (2013). She wants to change school start times to later because "we are asking [teens] to be awake and alert at the time in their 24-hour clock when their alertness level is at its very lowest,” (2013). She also says that most teens can’t usually fall asleep until 11 p.m. Sleep expert Amy Wolfson of College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Mass., says that children should try to get eight and a half to nine and a half hours of sleep a night. Waking up at six a.m. leads to bad sleep patterns creating sleep deprivation.
Should school start at 7:00 or should it start later in the morning? In Douglas High School, start times are at 7:30 in the morning. Changing the school schedule to a later start time would result in many other changes affecting a lot of people. According to the Sleep Foundation, "The change will affect the entire community, from students and parents to businesses, libraries, police, youth sports clubs, bus drivers and many others." Altering the school schedule would influence numerous aspects of people’s lives. Highly coordinated routines would have to be changed and adapted to the new schedule. A later release time would take time off of students’ free time in the afternoon. Clubs, sports, jobs, and other after-school activities would have
I. Introduction A. Attention grabber Recently, Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention (CDC) has strongly recommended education policymakers to start the school day later in the morning, especially, for middle and high schools. B. Background Info There have been many researches on whether school day should start early or later in the morning.