(RightIsRight.co) – As students gear up for a new school year, scientists and policymakers are arguing over whether school times should change and how these schedules affect children’s health and learning.
Research has brought up the typical 8 a.m. start time, revealing that it can be detrimental to middle and high school students.
However, changing the norm is no easy task, with concerns cropping up around bus schedules, parent drop-offs, and after-school activities.
Adam Winsler, a professor of applied developmental psychology at George Mason University, said, “There’s no controversy at all as far as the science is considered.” He pointed out that the real tug-of-war is between parents and school districts.
In 2014, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) suggested that schools should not start before 8:30 a.m., which aimed to ensure that teenagers get the recommended 8 to 10 hours of sleep.
Other organizations, like the National Education Association, the largest teacher’s union in the country, have also pushed for later start times.
Fred Medway, a licensed psychologist, emphasized that even a small change—starting an hour later—can have a huge impact.
“The things which increase are things like amount of sleeping, their physical health, their mental health is better, their academics are better, their attendance is better, their graduation rates are better, they eat more breakfast, they’re more focused in school,” Medway said.
He further added, “Things which go down are things like they’re less likely to be tardy, they’re less likely to have depression, less likely to have anxiety, less likely to be hurt at school, especially in a sport injury, less likely to use caffeine.”
Moreover, delaying start times particularly benefits older kids, who often face more screen-related distractions and later bedtimes, while younger children, who tend to sleep earlier, are not as impacted.
Additionally, later start times can clash with parents’ work schedules.
School districts face significant financial and logistical challenges when it comes to adjusting bus routes and reorganizing the school day, and it is not just parents who grapple with these changes.
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