Should School Start Later?

Do you ever find yourself not wanting to wake up early in the morning for school? Do you have a lot of homework and have to stay up late? Do you feel like you want to fall asleep in class? All of these could be prevented if school started later in the morning and you had time to sleep in and become more refreshed.

A few benefits of being able to sleep longer are better attendance and decreased tardiness. It also benefits physical and mental health, and grades. Also, if school starts later, there will be less vehicular accidents caused by tired drivers in the morning.

  According to the article, “Three Reasons to Consider Later School Start Times”, “Nearly half (46%) of the U.S. high schools that begin classes before 8 a.m. are filled with teenagers who have not received the 8+ hours of sleep that young people need.” The article, “The Importance of Sleep for Kids” states that, “Studies have shown that kids who regularly get an adequate amount of sleep have improved attention, behavior, learning, memory, and overall mental and physical health.

 Not getting enough sleep can lead to high blood pressure, obesity and even depression.” So if you can’t go to sleep early enough to get a good amount of sleep, there will be many negative effects if you have to wake up early that can all be prevented by school starting later.  Overall, there are many benefits of schools starting later.