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Sleep among teens
Bad sleeping habits for teens
Importance of sleep for high school students
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The benefits of starting high school at a later time would promote a higher education level with more willing and active students, as well as a more pleasant work environment for the teachers compared to that of an earlier arrival period. The early arrival time of many high schools today is unfortunately becoming the cause of sleep deprivation, health and safety issues, and poor student behavior. Later starts in high school will lead to healthier students who will ultimately receive a better education. Sleep deprivation can immensely affect teenagers’ mental and physical health. According to the National Sleep Foundation, it is necessary teenagers get about nine hours of sleep every night, but fewer than fifteen percent receive eight and a …show more content…
Students who are fatigued from their lack of sleep usually end up falling asleep in class, not concentrating enough, or dozing off. An extra one or two hours of sleep would definitely improve this problem.. In Anne Arundel County, MD., the buses start coming around 5:50 am, and the public schools would start at 7:17 am. Lisa Rodvien, a teacher who taught there, stated that the attendance of her first period classes “.. were as low as fifty percent or below.” She would walk over to the kids who were sleeping with their heads down, wake them up, and see how fatigued they were (Beth J. Harpaz, “Starting High School Later May Help Sleepy Teens”). A late start would definitely increase the attendance and alertness of students. Compared to the meager performance of the sleep deprived students, a few extra hours of sleep would definitely make them more productive. High schools who started having later starts are producing positive results. A University of Minnesota study this year used many school districts such as Minneapolis to St. Paul who have later start times, and found the safety and educational benefits (The Editorial Board, “High Schools: Wake Up to Later Start Times: Our View”). Nauset Public Schools in Massachussetts placed an hour later start, and their analysis showed that there was a 53%
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.
cases, this cycle can lead to depression and even suicide.” Therefore, it is crucial that schools prioritize the well-being of their students and adjust their schedules accordingly. The article titled "Despite Research on Teens' Sleep, Change to School Start Times Difficult" states that some argue against later school start times, claiming that "students will have less time later in the day to spend with their families if school starts later" (Blad). While this may seem like a valid concern, it is not always the case.
Later school start times are scientifically proven to help teens in many beneficial ways. Teenagers and adolescents have sleep patterns. According to the article,¨ Teens and Sleep¨ Teens bodies naturally
One of the benefits of later school start times is improved student performance. In a study conducted by researchers from the University of Minnesota, it was found that over eight hours of sleep each night boosted test scores, attendance, and overall academic achievement (Long). With a later start time, students would be able to get a better night's sleep, and would be overall more alert (Morin). If students in school are more alert, they will be able to pay more attention to teachers.
Sleep deprivation is very common in adolescents and can contribute to many different problems that can be avoided with simple changes in daily sleep routines. According to the article, “young and sleep deprived” by Karen Weintraub many psychologists want to persuade middle schools and high schools to push back start times to increase safety and performance in their students’ everyday lives. They claim that the reason why teenagers are drowsy and experience impaired attention span in class is because of sleep deprivation. Psychologists claim this because students around the United States are waking up before their circadian rhythms or internal clocks tell them to awake. Therefore, if students awake before their circadian
With delaying the schools start time, comes tardiness. Kids wouldn’t be tardy and wouldn’t be tired. A school that moved the starting time to 9:00 reported a 66% drop in tardiness. 70% of the kids from that school improved on their grades, and showed significant improvements. Later start times also reduced truancy in schools and dropout rates. 64% of teenagers that sleep in class
When it comes to middle and high schools, they tend to start early, not generally knowing why the kids are tired. Only 15% of schools in America start at 8:30 or later, and it’s affecting schools across the country. Early school start times plague the students with low grades, sleep deprivation, and lower social skills. A solution to all of those factors would be to make the school start time later than 8:00. Middle school start times should be later because grades will be better, more time to wake up, and better social skills.
“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
One reason why high school should start later than elementary schools is that with such early start times, the average high school students do not get enough sleep and are considered sleep deprived. According to a survey completed by The National Sleep Foundation, only 20% of high school students sleep the optimal 9 hours on school nights and 60% of children under the age of 18 have complained that they are tired throughout the school day to their parents (“School Start”). Sleep depravity is very common among high school students. With disadvantaged sleep patterns, adolescents have decreased mental sharpness and ability to pay attention during school hours. Therefore, grades and test scores are lower than their potential. In fact, “a recent survey by the National Sleep Foundation showed that only 20 percent of teenagers report getting the optimal 9 hours of sleep o...
It is common knowledge to most, that people perform better at school when they are adequately rested. Sleep is a necessary prerequisite for any action that an individual desires
Sleep is very important for students, especially at this time of their lives. During teenage years it is important to have a lot of sleep according to “School Start Times”. Studies have found that physical changes when entering adolescence cause teenagers to wake up and fall asleep later than when they were younger. This means that if school starts later, they could get a chance to get the sleep they need. Students who do get the sleep they need because of later school start times have reported that they have healthier skin and safer driving.
Have you ever fallen asleep in class before? Tens of thousands of kids living near you are deprived of sleep daily.They have to wake up early every weekday just to sit in a chair for the rest of the day. School schedules should be shortened because students need more sleep, a shortened schedule would improve learning, and studies have proven this beneficial for kids.
Some believe that students would only take the extra time to stay awake as they would get home later, especially considering after-school activities. The political side of the fence argues that a national enforcement of schools to start an hour later would only disrupt many systems already in place, a large effort for an extra hour of sleep. The article by the Prindle Post states “However, many in opposition argue that logistically, this transition would be a very difficult one. The American school system is so accustomed to starting before 8:30 that the time shift would be hard on parents, teachers, bus drivers, and athletic practices.” outlining the
Fifty six percent of students report being tired throughout the school day, which can lead to missed information and confusion (Wysong). According to this statistic, over half the students in class are not going to achieve their maximum learning potential in school. In order to avoid this problem, a teenager's brain typically needs to sleep from 11:00 pm to 8:00 am (“High schools starting later to help sleepy teens”). However, most high schools require students to be in class as early as 7:15 or 7:30 am. As a result, many adolescents simply do not have the opportunity to get enough rest. Changing the traditional school time to start later in the day will benefit adolescent sleep cycles, promote learning, and prevent disease by regulating the body. Ideally,...