May 10, 2024
By Alexa Cizek
Staff Writer
If you’ve heard your alarm go off in the early morning on a school day, and thought to yourself, “Why doesn’t school start later?” you’re not alone.
According to a survey of 84 LHS students conducted by The Lighthouse, 79% wish school started later. Similarly, 85% reported being more alert on days when a delayed opening pushes the school start time to 10:05 a.m.
The main reason school should start later is because it would give students the chance to get more sleep.
According to Sleepfoundation.org, teens need between eight and 10 hours of sleep per night but often report much less. Six out of 10 middle schoolers and seven out of 10 high schoolers report inadequate sleep on school nights, according to a survey conducted by the website.
There are many benefits to getting adequate sleep, according to The University of California, Davis. This includes, but is not limited to, an improved attention span, a boost in memory, increased learning and better physical health. These factors can greatly impact the quality of life among students and improve their capacity to learn.
Next, the American Psychological Association reports that sleeping later is better for students’ mental health. It can boost their mood and improve their outlook on school and learning. It can also strengthen attendance rates, reduce the need for disciplinary action in schools and lead to an increase in students’ grades.
When students get more sleep, they also have more energy to socialize. According to Rogers Behavioral Health, socialization impacts the lives of children and teens greatly. It teaches kids how to communicate, make friends, develop healthy relationships and get along with people who differ from them.
Having had more sleep, students will be more alert in class.
Additionally, starting school later would allow students to eat breakfast, According to a survey of 84 LHS students conducted by the Lighthouse, 71% do not eat breakfast on school days. Of those students, 57% said the reason they skip breakfast is due to lack of time. It is unfortunate that students feel so hurried that they forego the most important meal of the day.
Eating breakfast would provide students with a boost of energy to get them through the morning. It would help them concentrate and, therefore, excel in their classes.
A later start time would also improve attendance and decrease tardiness. Kids would not need to rush as much when getting to school. Also, students would have less interest in being absent because they would wake up feeling energized and refreshed.
Similar to students, teachers would also benefit from a later start time. Teachers need to get to school earlier than students, and a later start time would give them more time to get to school and prepare for the day. At LHS, many teachers do not live in Lyndhurst, and have to travel upwards of an hour to get to school on time. A later start time would allow them to be well-rested and have more energy to teach through the school day.
According to The University of Michigan’s website, students who get enough sleep tend to perform better academically. They are more alert, and sleep helps them remember what they learned in addition to preventing memory decay. Without sleep, people may work hard but do not perform as efficiently.
Research and student input both point to reasons schools should push back their start times. Therefore, school districts, including Lyndhurst, should consider making this much-needed change.
PIE CHARTS THROUGHOUT THIS ARTICLE CREATED BY ALEXA CIZEK
