Teenagers are one of the sleep-deprived people in the United States. On average, teenagers aren’t getting enough sleep. More importantly, you’re not getting enough quality sleep. Cell phones and other light-emitting technologies may be keeping kids up at night, but staying up late is only part of the problem. In addition to technology, one fairly controversial factor contributes to this overall sleepiness. It’s school start time.
For decades, researchers have found that delaying middle and high school start times benefits the physical, mental and emotional health of older children, not to mention academic achievement. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, along with several medical associations, advocate a delayed start time. Some school districts, not just California, have already shown they are honoring that evidence with the new start times.
But too many school districts are reluctant to make changes for logistical, financial, or cultural reasons. This is unfair to teens. A generation of students is catching up with her COVID. By delaying school start times, the health and well-being of students must be prioritized. Respecting their biological and social needs will produce more resilient adults who can thrive in today’s complex and unpredictable future world.
Teenagers need about 9 hours of sleep per night, but closer to 7 hours. Around puberty, the circadian clock shifts by several hours. That means you’ll be tired later at night and wake up later in the morning than you used to. This shift is reversed in adulthood. The biological nature of this daily rhythm means that putting teenagers to bed earlier won’t necessarily cause them to fall asleep earlier.
Experts say teens miss both restorative sleep and REM sleep, especially the cycle that normally occurs just before waking.Restorative sleep helps the body repair itself after a busy day and may improve immune function and other biological processes. REM sleep cements events and learnings into memory. [see more about sleep cycles in “When Dreams Foreshadow Brain Disease”]So if a 10th grader who goes to bed naturally around 11pm has to wake up at 6am for school, the teen is not just missing sleep, but quality sleep. . Also, a weekend sleepover doesn’t fully catch up.
These kids say they need more sleep. In survey after survey, they said that when school started later, they were less tired throughout the day, were more likely to get to school on time, and had to be less insistent on getting out of bed. He says that as he gets less sleep, his use of tobacco and drugs increases. They say that not getting an hour of sleep a day makes them hopeless and even suicidal. Possibly. Other studies have shown that one hour less sleep per day can lead to weight gain. Researchers say sleepy teens are more likely to be in car accidents, and even an extra 30 minutes of sleep can reduce mental health problems. Even teachers report that students are more engaged in the morning and teachers themselves are more rested the later their start time.
Despite decades of research, thousands of publications, and definite science, schools in just a few states and the District of Columbia are pushing the start time back to 8:30 a.m. on average.9 am
The road to school starting late is full of holes. The bus schedule needs to change. Teacher and administrator schedules need to be changed. After-school sports and enriched programs may have to start later. Parents and caretakers with more than one child may have to adjust the care of the older children and move the younger children back to an earlier start time. A late start to school can also mean that adults with inflexible work schedules will be late to work.
Experts say our model of agricultural education was designed to get teenagers to get up early and go home before dark to take care of the farm, but most modern students no longer have it. No relation. Our cultural view of teenagers as lazy and needing sleep as a weakness is harmful and inaccurate.and our complaints we It has survived from an early age, but even today’s teens can be callous and disrespectful of science.
Access to education is a basic right in the United States, but it’s time to stop thinking of school start times as a static mountain. More states are considering start-of-school laws, but school district administrators should prioritize it, and people running for school boards should add start times to their platforms. State-level funding agencies need to clear the hurdle for districts to want to try this out. Employers need to be more flexible to help parents fit into school schedules. This is especially true for hourly employees. Unions representing teachers and other education professionals also need to negotiate with teens in mind.
For decades, we’ve ignored overwhelming evidence that a later start time helps teens succeed. Let the teens sleep. There is nothing “awakened” about it.
