Persuasive Essay: Why Should Schools Start Later?

The times that our schools start have recently come under fire due to new opinions on teenage sleep standards. Researchers all over the country have produced new evidence linked to an optimal sleeping pattern. Sleep, in many ways, affects our personal health and because of such, many people are devoted to keeping their children healthy. Schools should start later because it allows for optimal sleep time, matches natural teenage sleep patterns, and shows correlation to information retention.
Researchers have recently conducted many studies to conclude exactly how many hours we need to sleep each night.to understand our need of sleep we first have to identify the reason behind sleeping, to rest and compile your brain of the thoughts from the day. With this information it is easy to conclude that yes, sleep holds a direct tie to brain development as it is important for the brain to both rest and organize information. This has persuaded many organizations to pursue others to accommodate more time to sleep,for our youth. This quote from the National Sleep Foundation sums this effort up best, "Over time, sleep deprivation leads to serious consequences for academic achievement, social behavior, and the health and safety of

our nation's youth," the Congresswoman added. "We must encourage schools to push back their start times to at least 8:30 a.m. — a schedule more in tune with adolescents' biological sleep and wake patterns and more closely resembling the adult work day."
Many people are under the impression that they know exactly how much sleep they need, but in reality most people believe that they need exactly eight hours of sleep each night. The Center for Disease Control has other opinions, they have concluded that most teenagers actually need around nine hours of sleep to maintain optimal growth. The problem comes arise as studies have also shown that teenagers are more likely to stay awake later in the night,naturally. This means that teenagers are going to sleep late and getting up too early for school, effectively slowing their growth. However, for many adults eight hours of sleep is perfect to maintain healthy brain activity. The other factor to consider, however, is that adults are more likely to feel sleepy earlier than most teenagers or children creating this gap in sleep. This quote explains the opinion of the CDC in this argument, “The CDC’s recommendations come a year after the American Academy of Pediatrics urged schools to adjust start times so more kids would get the recommended 8.5 to 9.5 hours of nightly rest. Both the CDC and the pediatricians’ group cited significant risks that come with lack of sleep, including higher rates of obesity and depression and motor-vehicle accidents among teens.” This just shows that an obvious correlation can be drawn from health and optimal sleep in our children.
The purpose of schools are to educate our children and provide them with lasting information. A good night's rest has been proven to directly correlate to our attention to and retention of information throughout the day. Why wouldn’t we want to provide our children with the best opportunity possible? Scientists have identified patterns of our brains in which we are more likely to retain information after fully waking up from sleep. Most likely due to a connection with our brain and our circadian rhythms our brain can experience levels of sleep. The Sleep Foundation provides a good example of the benefits of sleep on retention through a study by the University of Michigan in which the Minneapolis school district was studied after pushing their starting time to 8:40 a.m. rather than 7:15 a.m. The study concluded that this extra hour or so a day of sleep improved academic performance in many of the subjects.
The argument for school starting times is both political and a problem of time management.

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

concern.
Sleep plays a large role in the brain’s development as it allows for information from the day to be simplified while resting. Teenagers naturally feel sleepy later in the evening and therefore are receiving too little sleep with the early morning school day. The retention of information is directly linked to the optimal sleep and therefore is very important in our youth. The argument is mainly due to a concern over an abuse of the extra time that should be allotted to sleep. In conclusion, many have recommended that schools start later to give our youth the best chance to succeed.