Need to Allocate More Time to Rest

Out of 17,300, public schools the average start time is 7:59 am. Therefore, students are struggling to meet the recommended 8 to 9 ¼ hours of sleep each night to be successful. Teenager’s biological clock doesn’t slow down until 11:00pm.With that being said, it is almost impossible for students to get the recommended hours of sleep each night to be successful in their school performance. Public school districts should push back start times for high school to help improve student success.

The federal data shows that the average U.

S public school start time is 7:59(Campisi). Research shows that a teenager’s biological clock doesn’t slow down before 11:00 pm. So if health experts have proven that a teen biological clock doesn’t slow down until 11:00 pm then why isn’t it mandated that high school starts later. Teenagers need at least 9 ¼ hours of sleep each night for a student to perform effectively in school and for the development of the brain(Backgrounder).

In a Youth Risk Behavior survey in 2015, 73% of high school students were getting less than 8 hours of sleep on a school night and 43% of high school students got 6 or fewer hours of sleep on a school night (Washington Post). Another study showed that out of 60,000 teens between the years of 2011-2017 showed that only 5% of those kids were getting the recommended hours of sleep. If you do the math that is only 3,000 kids out of 60,000 getting the amount of sleep their body needs (Bracho). Everyone knows that one kid who always slept in a class and never really paid attention and if the school districts had it to where the school start time was around a teenager’s biological clock, then they would be more likely to succeed.

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Getting enough sleep at night is crucial to be successful in school. If the research shows that there is a medical reasoning on why teenagers can’t fall asleep soon then why are school districts not doing something about it? Why aren’t districts wanting the best for their students and their success?

When students aren’t getting the recommended hours of sleep, then students began to rely on caffeine to keep them awake in class. Depending on caffeine has many long term effects such as, severe dehydration, chronic panic attacks and high levels of adrenaline and cortisol(Lombardo). Students will do whatever it takes to keep them awake in class but don’t realize their long term effects. Although there is research that caffeine in some cases can help enhance someone’s mental performance, with certain extents, but teenagers are not aware of it. If students rely on caffeine all throughout high school then they will have health effects later in life. Instead of depending on caffeine teenagers just need a little bit more sleep and the necessities to help them meet their biological clock at night.

Sleeping in on weekends or vacations can throw off a teen’s natural sleep/wake cycle (Morin). Something parents can do to make sure their kids are keeping a good sleep cycle is helping them keep a consistent sleep schedule on weekends and vacations. Parents can prevent the use of hours on a child phone by limiting the screen time which will prevent a child from staying up all night. Not only that a parent can take their child’s phone out of the room to prevent them from checking their phone when it buzzes.

Teenagers experience Fomo (fear of missing out), so they feel the need to check their phone once it rings. Melatonin is the body natural hormone secretion that tells themselves it’s time to go to bed. Research has proven that the light from a screen can interfere with the body melatonin(Brancho). Parents always push their children to do their best in school and most likely if they aren’t meeting the parent’s grade expectations it could be linked to their sleeping habits. Parents should be aware of their child’s sleep habits. Apple just released an app for parents to see why how much screen time their child is using and on which specific app their child is using. With this app, parents can control when their child’s phone can turn off and to shut off certain apps at a certain time. Parents need to be utilizing this app more often to help their child succeed in school and make sure their body is getting the right amount of sleep it needs. With that being said parents can help and make sure their children are getting the right amount of sleep.

Not getting enough sleep at night is linked to athletic injuries. A 2012 study of Los Angeles middle and high school athletes, found that getting less than eight hours of sleep at night were the ones that were acquiring injuries. Out of those students two-thirds who did not meet the eight hours of sleep got injured(Why School). Having an extracurricular activity requires more time for someone to settle down. Say a student athlete has a game at 7:30 pm and doesn’t end until 9:00-9:30 then that person is going to need extra time to settle down before they can fall asleep(Lombardo). Which means they may take a little bit longer until their settled for bed. With that being said also proves why school start times need to be pushed back.No one enjoys getting injured therefore getting more sleep will prevent that. So For the people who enjoy sports teams probably don’t realize that getting the recommended hours of sleep can prevent them from injuries. Some people might propose the thought that if school districts push back their start time than it will have a negative effect to the sports programs. Schools have been studied on this idea and it proves that there wasn’t a negative effect on the number of wins the school had after changing the start time(Later Start).

During 2010-2013, eight high schools in Minnesota, Colorado, and Wyoming participated in a study (About 9,000 students grades 9-12 were studied on their sleep habits, study habits, mood, and substance use. Academically they studied their grades, tardies, attendance, and standardized test results. Out of that study 1st period grade point average increased in one or more courses such as, english, math, social studies, and science (Later Start). All of those subjects are needed to pass almost every year to continue to the next grade. Also the University of Minnesota found that students who have a later school start time receive better overall test scores and grades compared to the students who have an earlier start time(Lombardo). With research to prove this point you would think school districts would make the change to help their students succeed. Although some school districts have made the change, there needs to be more that hop on board.

Waking up every day at 6:00 am or earlier to catch a bus or just get to school on time really takes a toll on someone. Your body becomes exhausted and someone might think to themselves that missing one day or coming in late every now and then won’t hurt anybody. Schools actually get paid for students coming to school so attendance rates and tardy rates do affect the school. Research has proven that students attendance rates improved, tardies are being reduced, and even dropout rates are reduced when a student’s school responsibilities match with their biological clock (Lombardo). With later start times will have a significant improvement for the school outcome and even making a little bit more money for the school.

Getting the recommended hours of sleep each night also have physical and emotional benefits. The REM cycle, Rapid Eye Movement, is when a human reaches a deep sleep with rapid movements of the eye, low muscle tone throughout the body and being able to dream vividly. Reaching the REM cycle can benefit your health in the long run, which can boost the immune system(Campisi). When a student is not reaching the recommended hours of sleep students experience mood swings, mood behaviors, depression, delayed reaction time, irritability, have trouble learning new concepts and psychological disorders(Lombardo).

“Journal of Youth and Adolescence says it all: Sleepless in Fairfax: The Difference One More Hour of Sleep can make for Teen Hopelessness, Suicidal Ideation, and Substance Use”(Lewis). Many teenagers struggle with mental disorders and it can take a toll on a person. The research shows that getting less hours of sleep at night can affect a mental aspect of someone. Just a little bit more sleep can help prevent depression and other mental and health aspects of a person. Teenagers often don’t think about eating breakfast in the morning, let alone a healthy one. With school starting at a later time it allows them to get a chance to eat a healthy breakfast. By eating a healthy breakfast students can get the nutrients their body needs and keep their health in good shape. Some people do not believe breakfast is the most important meal of the day but it truly is.

A 2014 Children’s National Medical Center done a report on how state funding is linked to attendance (Why School). Therefore the more students who attend school will eventually bring in more dollars for the school. With that being said if the start time is pushed back it will allow the school to make more money. Megan Reilly, Chief Financial Officer for the Los Angeles United School District, has estimated that boosting attendance by 1% district wide would bring in additional $40 million dollars per year. So you would think that school districts would want to save money and possibly even make more money with attendance.

Just by changing school start times, it will significantly improve students test scores and grades. Dr. Amy Wolfson, Professor of Psychology at Loyola University in Maryland, found that students who had a grade of C or below were getting 25 fewer minutes of sleep compared to students with high grades. Also Finely Edwards, a Colby College Economist, constructed that a one hour delay increased math and reading test scores by 3 percentile points. Not only that he also constructed that the lowest scoring students showed a significant jump in test scores. Here is the proof that later start times will improve school performance. A study on a school that had a later start time, the principal reported that fewer disciplinary incidents were reported in the lunchroom and hallways(Later Start). This report is important because if changing the start time will significantly benefit the whole school.

Everyone hears the stories about the crazy people who don’t stop for the bus when the bus makes it stop to pick up their kids. People will just drive by and not realize that a kid is walking across the street in the dark and hit them. Early morning are too dark for kids crossing the streets. It’s crazy to think that people are in a rush or just don’t care and will risk the idea of hitting a child. With school starting later in the morning it will increase the safety for kids crossing the street.

Everyone knows how hard it is to be cautious and be aware while being extremely tired. The American Automobile Association (AAA) reported that drowsiness is responsible for an average of 100,000 vehicular accidents (Lombardo). 2,700 teenagers have been killed in car crashes(Later Start). Not only, Jonathan Adkins, executive director of the Governors Highway Safety Association, states that teens and younger adults are involved in more than ½ of all drowsy driving accidents annually. Why aren’t districts taking in the consideration that teens are affected by the early start times and do get involved in car accidents.? In Lexington, Kentucky teen car crashes for 17 and 18 year olds dropped 16.5% in the 2 years following a start time shift (Why School). The research proves that drowsy driving is a real thing and many teens are being affected by it. It happens more often that a lot of people think. School districts should not just be worrying about the education for their students but also the safety for their students.

It’s time for all the public high schools to hop on board and push back the start time for high school. The average time is 7:59 am, which is way too early for teenagers to succeed in school. Medical research shows that teenagers have a biological clock that doesn’t match up with the school start time. Resulting in it not matching students don’t do as well in school due to many health, mental,and physical factors. Not only are they not doing as well but transportation has become a factor on why school should start later. The outcome for changing the start time is good all around. Students and the school will benefit from adjusting the time. So far all the schools that have made the switch are showing progress in all aspects of their schools. It’s now time for the United States public schools to make their change and start later to benefit the students and school itself.

Works Cited

1. “Backgrounder: Later School Start Times.” 23 January 2019. The National Sleep Foundation,www.sleepfoundation.org/sleep-newa/background-later-schools-start-times.
2. Lombardo, Crystal. “Crystal Lombardo.” Vittana.org, vittana.org/19-should-school-start-later-in-the-morning-pros-and-cons
3. Campisi, Jessica. “Should the School Day Start Later?” Education Dive, 24 Sept. 2018, www.educationdive.com/news/should-the-school-day-start-later/532961/.
4. “The Washington Post, WP Company, 6 Apr. 2018, 23 January 2019. www.washingtonpost.com/news/answer-sheet-e.p./2018/04/06/why-it’s-ridiculous-that-high-schools-start-so-early-in-the-morning/?noredirect=on&utm _term=.0db084df4553.
5. Morin, Amy, and LCSW. “Should High School Really Start Later so Teens Can Get More Sleep?” Verywell Family, www.verywellfamily.com/the-pros-and-cons-of-starting-school-later-26095765
6. Lewis, Lisa, “Why Should School Start Later in the Day.” Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times,18 Sept. 2016, www.latimes.com/opinion/op-ed/la-oe-lewis-schools-too-early-20160918-snap-story-.html