Ann Arbor to study later high school start times
- Related story: Ann Arbor student: 'Without Roberto Clemente I would be dead'
- Related story: Painful choices: Ann Arbor school board wrestles with need to cut at least $7 million
Ann Arbor school board members expressed an interest Wednesday in studying the possibility of starting high school classes later for students.
Several national studies have found that teenagers are predisposed to sleeping between the hours of 11 p.m. and 8 a.m. because of how and when teens produce melatonin. Melatonin is a chemical, that according to studies, make teens “somewhat naturally night owls.”
Research shows teens are somewhat naturally night owls. Ann Arbor Public Schools discussed the possibility of pushing back high school start times to cater to teens' brain functionality.
MLive.com file photo
Ann Arbor Public Schools Assistant Superintendent of Secondary Education Joyce Hunter led a discussion on start times at Wednesday’s meeting at the request of trustees.
The presentation came amid a marathon meeting that lasted past 2:30 a.m. and included a discussion of budget cuts and impassioned pleas from the community to spare Roberto Clemente Student Development Center, which the district has proposed merging with another school.
The next step will be conducting a survey of parents and students to gather their thoughts on the concept. The district also plans to consult with local university professors and other experts in the area of start times and teen sleeping patterns.
Then a steering committee, comprised of community members, district officials, a board member, teachers, students and one transportation employee, will be developed with the intent that the committee will make a recommendation on later start times for the 2013-14 school year.
Hunter said collective bargaining contracts also will need to be analyzed to see what impact, if any, a later start time would have on employee groups.
The cons to changing start times, Hunter pointed out, would be parent work schedules, transportation logistics and potentially adverse effects on extracurricular activities. Hunter’s recommendation was to have the steering committee analyze these aspects.
Superintendent Patricia Green said young people’s livelihoods also need to be considered. Many teens work after school to save money for college, she said.
Board members discussed how changing the start times might impact the possible cuts the district may make to transportation this year, such as eliminating high school busing all together.
Trustee Simone Lightfoot said she does not like the idea of doing so many things piecemeal, one year at a time. President Deb Mexicotte said this topic, a dilemma about whether to put seventh-hour class options at the start or the end of the instructional day, ways to incorporate online learning and, of course, transportation are all sort of “bound up together.”
“So when I think about it, I think much more holistically,” she said. “If we are going to move high school start times, we obviously have to consider the ramifications for the entire day and there are a lot of things we end up having to look at as we go down this budget tightening road, such as using class time more efficiently.”
Mexicotte added that in the district’s current cash-strapped status, everything is intertwined. The board has to look at all pieces together, she said.
Trustee Irene Patalan said she is not convinced by the studies that claim later start times help performance.
“I kind of want to go and find the research that says don’t do this (switch to a later start time),” she said. “I think there is an instinctual thing about my kids wanting more sleep...
“I guess I’m not convinced. But I do want more information.”
Trustee Susan Baskett said her concerns are about transportation being used as an excuse for not doing something.
“Our transportation should work for us. We should not be tying kids to transportation,” she said. “On the other hand, kids can be very creative if they want to do something. I came in early so I could be yearbook editor. … Let’s not be wedded to one idea. If we are going to study this for yet another year, let’s look at more options.”
Other options might include a split schedule, Hunter said in her presentation.
Additional reading: Research by the National Sleep Foundation and a study from the University of Minnesota
Staff reporter Danielle Arndt covers K-12 education for AnnArbor.com. Follow her on Twitter @DanielleArndt or email her at daniellearndt@annarbor.com.
Comments
AAPS Student
Sat, Apr 28, 2012 : 10:53 p.m.
Yes please! Every night I have so much hw every night I don't go to bed until after 11. And then in the morning I have to get up at 6 to go to school. (School starts at 7:45) During school I am always so tired but if school started later, I could get more sleep. Teenagers need 8-9 hours of sleep a night, and most high school students don't get that.
K.L.
Sat, Apr 28, 2012 : 4:49 a.m.
Starting school later would be great! Maybe Pioneer could get rid of their tardy sweeps. I was swept into only one my entire four years at Pioneer and it was the most pointless 35 minutes of life. Mr White just yelled about how we're lazy and that we're all slacking off obviously and that we obviously don't want to put in our fullest effort, all while we missed most of our class, putting us further behind. I feel it's a bit counterproductive. But who knows, it's still going on. *sigh* Anyway, students would be a lot more active in class, and it'd be a lot more efficient and worthwhile to attend class. Also, for swimmers who have practices twice a day (once in the morning, once in the afternoon), it'd be so great cause they'd wake up a bit later. I pity my classmates who have to do that - they always look so dead in the morning.
Davidian
Sat, Apr 28, 2012 : 1:11 a.m.
I went to Ann Arbor Huron in the 90s. I woke up at 5:30am to catch the bus that came at 6:15. Then I got home at about 4:30 in the afternoon if I was lucky. Then I had homework. It didn't "prepare me for the real world" at all. I was simply exhausted and I hated high school. That was the effect exactly. I left the district and my new school started closer to 9. It was all the difference in the world. Waking up at dawn is what we do naturally. For adults that only need 7 hours of sleep, early rise might make sense. But for teens that need 10 hours, as studies show, it does not. I never understood the early start and never will. Change it.
GB
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 8:38 p.m.
Why not let the students start the day when they feel awakened... and ready to think. Kind of like "School On demand".... And bring your I phones everyone!!!
janofmi
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 5:51 p.m.
This has been studied to death in many other districts. Do you see any schools around with the later start for HS and early start for Elem? For elementary kids (5-11 year olds) to leave for school when it is still dark is unreasonable. To have Elem start even later then often they are not getting home until after 5. Sometime is it just best to leave things alone and note what others have learned.
anotherannarborite
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 11:15 a.m.
I've seen high schools start late, but offer a "0 period" that is a class period before the regular start time. If students wanted to, they could take one extra class (credit recovery or accelerated graduation), or they could get out earlier, or they could build in study hall. What about swapping the start time with the elementary. If the elementary started an hour earlier, that would be fine with me! Elementary kids need help walking to school or getting on the bus, so I would think working parents would prefer getting only after school rather than before and after school child care.
Amanda Blackson
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 11:03 a.m.
How late would students get out? There are already many many things revolved around the current High School schedule and now your asking to make it totally change? I believe that this would greatly impact the family time and also the transportation to school. Many kids get driven to school by their parents before they go to work. For some kids that's the only way they can get to school because of the more recent cutting of buses to various places. When will you quit? You've already cut the majority of buses and now you want to start High School later which will mean cutting a lot of kids transportation. The Ann Arbor Public Schools have been on the list of the best schools in the nation. Huron and Pioneer have been awarded many awards for having the best staff, students, and overall best school in the nation. I believe starting school later would overall be a horrible decision.
BradP
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 5:54 a.m.
well, dexter has it backward. They are adding a "zero hour" in the fall so teens can take classes before school even starts. Hey kids, here's an idea: drive yourself to school in the dark when you are still half asleep and then stay alert and engaged until 3pm prediction: by midweek it will be "night of the living dreads." bad joke, I know, but its true... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W6SWz27OXac
Michael K.
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 5:52 a.m.
Erg .... Candis - sorry! No editing here.
Michael K.
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 5:50 a.m.
Thanks Ezra & Candice for your input. I think most students are capable of providing important feedback on ALL of these School Board decisions. (I couldn't reply directly to you on my phone for some reason.) In fact there are self governing schools where the students make all the rules that have been very successful. Most students have the same desires, limitations, and challenges we have as adults - staying up to read or watch a show when we know we shouldn't, etc. And they learn to make good decisions if we let them. I am still quite curious why a teenagers biological clock naturally makes them want to sleep until noon and stay up until 3am? That is a fact. I think that schedule might be a little tough on parents and teachers though, who prefer to get to bed by 9! Cheers! Thanks again. Sorry for the rudeness here. Adults can be bullies too sometimes. And I bet you two would do better than some school board members, at least here in Saline.
Candis Hale
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 4:16 a.m.
As a student at Pioneer High School my dr. prescribed me melatonin so that I could get on the right sleeping schedule.. START SCHOOL LATER (:
Kari Oakes
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 3:19 a.m.
Thanks for this article -- later high school start times are also being considered in Ypsilanti, and all over the country. The research and real-life experiences are clear -- performance improves, health and safety risks decrease, and even car crashes go down when school starts later for adolescents. There's a grassroots nationwide movement to have schools all over the country start no earlier than 8 a.m. -- visit StartSchoolLater.net to learn more.
AAW
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 2:44 a.m.
As much as we could/would like to see this happen it won't. Don't waste money doing a study there are studies done just use them as a reference. Duh............There I just save the district money.
Zach Shaw
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 2:25 a.m.
One thing they could do is switch the uncommonly used 7th hour with 1st hour. This way school can start later for most students without at all impacting the sports and extracurriculars, since they all start at 3:45 anyways. I've talked to some parents and they said this is how school used to be for them, seems simple enough.
BradP
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 6:19 a.m.
this is a great idea
Tesla
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 2:20 a.m.
Just more evidence of why the foreign students put perform kids in the USA. Let em sleep in what the heck. They are going to be a runner up any how. If you're lucky.
Tesla
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 2:22 a.m.
That's "out" perform. ED NOTE: Add an edit feature for a minute or two so we can make corrections to our crappy spelling and such. Gee whiz. It's 2012.
hmsp
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 2:14 a.m.
@ joe.blow, re: "This is CRAZY! Maybe we should be teaching our students life skills, blah, blah, blah..." As adults, we know that there are huge problems that come with upsetting our circadian rhythms, so when we take on jobs in the fields of medicine, law enforcement, etc., we know that we have to work extra hard to build an environment that we can sleep in — blackout curtains, eye masks, ear muffs to shut out daytime noise, etc. It is incredibly hard to fight natural, circadian rhythms, and it has been known for decades that, for whatever reason, teenagers' rhythms don't coincide with normal daytime hours. And teenagers are not yet equipped with adult-level skills, let alone the extraordinary skills of that small percentage of the adult population that has been able to reset its rhythms to match its job descriptions. PS Although I wrote this response to you, I actually don't end up aiming it at you, joe.blow — I accidentally clicked on your history, instead of the respond button, and found that 7 out of your last 10 posts have been deleted as inappropriate. I get it, I got drawn in by the angry bait that was dangled, but I'll send my post out anyway, to the general population, instead.
BradP
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 6:18 a.m.
@Tesla by the time these kids are in the intense job and education specific marketplace, they will be adult and have finished college and possible post graduate. Their circadian rhythms will be quite different then. If you want them to learn and stay engaged in high school, then yes, the time of day should be geared to when they can best learn. And it's not 7:40am. That will prepare them better for college than keeping them strung out and bleary-eyed. We all grow up, but adolescents are not just moody adults, they are their own special kind of wacky [that's the scientific term for it]. When they grow up, they'll go back to normal. Or most of them will. They look like us, but they are still changing inside.
Tesla
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 2:27 a.m.
On an upside. If you have kids. When they can't find a good job....you can let them sleep in, because they will still be living at your home when they are 23.
Tesla
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 2:26 a.m.
Circadian rhythms? While you teach the kids circadian rhythms they are going to get hammered in this intense job and education specific marketplace. Juz sayin.
Sallyxyz
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 1 a.m.
Just do it! Don't waste more taxpayer's money on studies that will only confirm the obvious.
Sallyxyz
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 12:50 a.m.
Starting later will also accomplish another benefit: some teenagers will not be home alone for several hours before parents get home from work. I also believe that starting classes at 7:40 a.m. is far too early for teenagers. They sleep through their first period classes. Lunch hours are way too early due to staggered times to accommodate all students in the cafeteria. Many benefits to starting later. Extracurricular activities will adjust accordingly. My kids went through A2 schools and I remember how tired they were all through their first and second classes in the mornings. Having to be at school when it is still dark is very difficult for some teens.
AAPS Student
Sat, Apr 28, 2012 : 11:07 p.m.
I agree! A lot of the kids in my classes fall asleep during first hour, and don't participate in classes (they usually don't until 3rd hour) because they are so tired. When 5th hour comes, the kids are rambunctious and out of control. Especially at Skyline, early lunch is at 10 in the morning! No one is hungry then. I agree, aaps schools should start later
joe.blow
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 12:35 a.m.
I can't believe the comments on this forum. These pampered kids need to have there parents step up and get them to BED earlier! What's wrong with these parents? Kids need sleep, you're the parent, get them to bed so they can get a good education. Why even bother making them go to school, why not just let them drop out if they can't show up awake and alert, school is expensive so if they don't care, then they shouldn't be there. School should mean something.
AAPS Student
Sat, Apr 28, 2012 : 11:03 p.m.
@Joe, for most teenagers in high school it is hard because you have so much homework that you stay up until 11 every night to finish it. Its not that kids don't want to go to bed earlier its that they cant! Every school night I don't go to bed until after 11 because I have so much homework that I can't finish it until then. So I and many other students don't get the 8-10 hours of sleep needed. Trust me, if I could go to bed earlier I would!
skigrl50
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 3:25 p.m.
What you don't seem to understand is that physiologically teens don't produce melatonin until later in the night. This is what allows us to fall asleep. So if you send a teen to bed at 9PM, chances are they still won't fall asleep until 11 or 12. Why should we try to change nature when we can simply alter the school schedule to accommodate what is happening in our children's brains. As they enter into young adulthood, the melatonin is produced earlier and they can once again fall asleep earlier in the evening.
Joe Kidd
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 10:15 a.m.
I agree with Joe. This is nuts. Get rid of the Xboxes, Play Stations and cell phones and put your kids to bed like mine did and I did with my kids.
canadafua2
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 2:38 a.m.
yeah joe at least there parents love them.
Linda Peck
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 12:16 a.m.
This is great, a positive new direction, kids need extra sleep and starting later in the morning is the right move. I remember needing much more sleep during my teenage years and I had a wonderful mother who would let me sleep as long as I wanted on the weekends.
jns131
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 12:08 a.m.
I just thought of it. College goes until 10? Why not?
joe.blow
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 12:06 a.m.
This is CRAZY! Maybe we should be teaching our students life skills and not making it easier to get out of bed. For most successful people, getting out of bed in the morning is a must, changing school time is not a good way to teach the real world. Maybe going to bed earlier and cutting out T.V. would be more helpful.
BradP
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 6:10 a.m.
When you get to the real world, you are an adult and your brain chemistry stops being adolescent haywire and getting up early IS good for you. Forcing adult patterns on teens can lead to depression, lower grades, overeating, behavior issues and increased likelihood of car accidents. Going to bed and going to sleep are two different things. One you can control and the other, not so much.
sellers
Thu, Apr 26, 2012 : 11:49 p.m.
Makes sense. Teens by nature are programmed to want to sleep in while elementary students wake up at the crack of dawn. We've all experienced it one way or another. Don't fight nature
beeswing
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 4:37 a.m.
It? You call your child an "it"?
jns131
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 12:06 a.m.
Mine would sleep until noon if you let it. Up all nite and sleep all day. Why not just have hi school at 1 in the afternoon and go to 10?
Marvin Face
Thu, Apr 26, 2012 : 11:41 p.m.
This is an excellent idea. Just ask the kids what they want. I'm sure they'll tell you they would like to start at 10am. So be it. I think that we should also give them Fridays and Mondays off, too. Life is so hard. It's just so hard. This gets them ready for the schedule they will have in college: no classes earlier than 10am and no classes later than 2pm, Fridays off.
Joe Kidd
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 10:12 a.m.
I agree Marv. Start them later. But they won't want to stay any later than they do now.
beeswing
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 4:35 a.m.
It? Really?
joe.blow
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 12:07 a.m.
I think they should also have Monday's off and day's of the week that start with "T" and if the day starts with an upside Down "M."
xmo
Thu, Apr 26, 2012 : 10:36 p.m.
What about students in Alaska, Iceland, Sweden, Finland, South Africa? They get a lot more darkness then we do? What about their melatonin levels? Sounds like a bunch of Bull Science to me!
jns131
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 12:06 a.m.
Actually you cannot compare the European and Asian children to ours. They are way ahead of the game while USA becomes third world in education. Good luck with that one.
sh1
Thu, Apr 26, 2012 : 11:37 p.m.
Which of the studies did you read?
DBH
Thu, Apr 26, 2012 : 10:32 p.m.
Throughout high school I delivered The Detroit Free Press to about 120 customers which necessitated me getting out of bed at 5:30 AM, putting the folded papers (folded by my mother, bless her soul) in 2-3 bags (depending on how thick the paper was) and delivering them on my bicycle during any and all kinds of weather. I hated getting up that early but, in doing so in combination with vigorous physical (and some mental) activity, by the time I arrived at high school for the first class at 7:30 AM, I was wide awake from the get-go. Such a regimen for today's students likely is not practical (even if it involved just in-home exercise), but one can overcome nature's tendencies (i.e., a later sleep cycle in teenage years) if need be.
Hot Sam
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 12:24 a.m.
DBH...you had to know it by heart, it was too early for anything else :-) :-) :-)
DBH
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 12:08 a.m.
@Hot Sam, as I wrote, my mother folded my papers, so that saved me some time, and I was pretty fast and knew my route by heart. And, FWIW, I went to high school not too far from your delivery area, near Eastland. @sellers, I did not recommend what I did as the default, just that it was possible. As I wrote, "...if need be."
sellers
Thu, Apr 26, 2012 : 11:52 p.m.
You are right you can overcome but why fight nature as the default for everyone. Kids already have morning sport and club practices so there will still be those that buck nature.
Hot Sam
Thu, Apr 26, 2012 : 11:43 p.m.
BTW...how did you get away with sleeping in so late? :-) :-) :-)
Hot Sam
Thu, Apr 26, 2012 : 11:36 p.m.
@dbh I did Fordham and Seven Mile from Gratiot to Kelly...also around 120 customers...I know what your talking about!
Hot Sam
Thu, Apr 26, 2012 : 10:12 p.m.
Sounds to me like they need to go to bed earlier...
Joe Kidd
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 10:11 a.m.
I'm with Sam. It's what my parents did. And what I did with my kids who excelled in school. Not to mention all the generations before and after. But it's the age of entitlement I guess.
shine16
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 9:37 a.m.
Sallyxyz.....When my 13 yr. old goes to bed, all of her "electronics" stay behind. Has proved to be an easy solution for us. Otherwise, I have no doubt she'd stay up texting/posting/chatting.
Hot Sam
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 12:56 a.m.
I remember it well Dotdash...look further on and read the posts by my fellow Free Press carriers and you'll know I understand early better than most...
Sallyxyz
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 12:55 a.m.
One problem with that is that kids have their own bedrooms and what they do there is not usually supervised by parents in the late hours of the evening. A kid can say he or she is going to bed, and then stay up late on the internet or whatever. Unless a parent is literally in the same room, there is no way to know what goes on when the lights are out. Should parents continue to check on their teens in their rooms every 15 minutes after they say they are going to bed? Have any of you had teens and done this?
dotdash
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 12:36 a.m.
Sounds to me like you don't remember being a teenager and have never had one. Don't you remember?
leaguebus
Thu, Apr 26, 2012 : 10:02 p.m.
http://www.cehd.umn.edu/research/highlights/Sleep/ There are a bunch of studies that show its good to start later. One is above.
15crown00
Thu, Apr 26, 2012 : 9:48 p.m.
the later they start the later they finish
joe.blow
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 12:09 a.m.
Good point, they should start at 4PM and finish at midnight, bet that would cut down on teen pregnancy rates also!
Vince Caruso
Thu, Apr 26, 2012 : 9:43 p.m.
With two kids that have gone thru AAPS system I can say without hesitation the K-6 are always the first up and the 9-12 are the last up. We need to switch the program or just start everyone at a reasonable time. Why have we been so stupid to schedule 7-12 school based on BUSING and SPORTS, and NOT on academics? Pretty basic stuff here.
Bulldog
Thu, Apr 26, 2012 : 9:42 p.m.
Transportation rules this district! This is so frustrating as a teacher when scheduling field trips. Our hands are tied!
jns131
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 12:04 a.m.
Not really. What really ties our hands is the fact we are short on drivers and everyone wants a field trip on the same day. So in reality? Transportation does not rule. It is what is available and if there is a budget for it.
EraZ3712
Thu, Apr 26, 2012 : 9:38 p.m.
I am a 16 year old sophomore student from Pioneer High. Although I do not speak for the entire student body, I must say that whenever we've had the very rare circumstance of having a half-day which started not at 7:40 but sometime near 9, this topic came up throughout the school day and the following week or so after. Almost every student I've talked with at the time told me they felt much more AWAKE, energetic, and alert than on a half-day which started at the regular time. Also, seeing the sunlight when you open your eyes gives you some sort of inner vitality which I think we as students take for granted on weekends. I did not see anybody that day having weary-eyes or drooping heads; even if they were tired, they were still AWAKE. I don't know what the adults/teachers/staff think of this, but I personally feel sorry for the first and sixth-seventh hour teachers. Either the students didn't get enough sleep and so drowse off during first hour, or they use up whatever little energy they had and at the end of the day become cranky/depressed/sleepy, whatever their personalities call for. I'm sure it will impact student-jobs, but I don't think it will be too big of a harm, and I believe that the schedules will easily adapt. After-school clubs and activities, even if school is pushed back an entire hour, will still have plenty of time before dinner (I hope), though that depends on where the student lives/when they eat. Personally, I get an average of around 4-5 hours of sleep on weekdays, nowhere near the recommended amount of 8-10 hours a teenager should be getting. However, many of my friends admit they get an average of almost 2-3 hours on particularly busy weeks, whether it be studying for several consecutive tests or backed-up homework due on the next day. I admit most of the time the student brought it on themselves, but there are many cases where it is simply too much work for the student to deal with, and to deal with it he/she needs to sacrifice sleep time.
beatrix packmohr
Thu, Feb 7, 2013 : 5:55 p.m.
Well said. Let me ask a different question. Do you think there would be a difference if a student sleeps between 11 pm and 7 am or between 1 am and 9 am? 8hrs of sleep is 8 hrs of sleep, right? What I'm hearing is that there is just too much work for high school students and students simply don't get enough sleep. How about reducing homework (which studies show are not always very useful) and thereby lessen the workload and offer an opportunity to go to bed a little earlier?
arborani
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 7:48 p.m.
Very well expressed, Ezra. You're there in the trenches, so to speak, and your viewpoint is valuable.
eastsider2
Thu, Apr 26, 2012 : 9:30 p.m.
We need to do this. Maybe sports/activities can move to before school. Let's figure out the transportation, figure out if any middle or elementary start times need to change and get it done.
Chickadee
Thu, Apr 26, 2012 : 8:59 p.m.
Dexter schools has all grades on the same schedule. This helps transportation costs as all grades ride the same bus at the same time. It seems to be working well. Might be something to look into!
DonBee
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 12:57 a.m.
grimmk - Simple answer is to use 3 attendence zones based on the high schools, stagger the start by 45 minutes for each zone. Less fuel burned, fewer buses and later starts for the high schools.
sellers
Thu, Apr 26, 2012 : 11:54 p.m.
Cool idea but there are issues with HS student conversation and behavior that is hard to govern that may have unintended impacts on a seven year old.
grimmk
Thu, Apr 26, 2012 : 9:16 p.m.
Yes, but Dexter is by far a small school district. If Ann Arbor were to do this they'd have to have twice as many buses to transport all the students at the same time. Logistically, it just wouldn't work.
CSWins
Thu, Apr 26, 2012 : 8:38 p.m.
As Sparky pointed out, studies have shown the need for sleep in adolescents. Don't we all perform better on a good night's sleep?! The National Sleep Foundation has compiled a significant amount of data on this subject and cites locations where teachers/communities have seen a positive difference. So, do we as the comments show, do we really need to have an additional study at taxpayer's expense? Safety, productivity, and the long-term health of our youth is what is important. and a later start time will impact all three. http://www.sleepfoundation.org/article/hot-topics/backgrounder-later-school-start-times
skigrl50
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 3:08 p.m.
I think the study is to actually figure out how to implement it into the schools.
sparky
Thu, Apr 26, 2012 : 8:27 p.m.
As a former teacher and administrator I can say with great certainty, moving the school day back should have been done decades ago. The tail has been wagging the dog by allowing bus schedules, collective bargaining contracts, and sports related activities to rule the day. Studies have already shown that secondary students will perform at a higher level if they get more sleep. Not sure after-school jobs is a significant issue. For the most part jobs for secondary school age children have been eliminated due to minimum wage laws. Retail establishments and other business can no longer afford to hire this age group.
jns131
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 12:02 a.m.
Actually Chelsea and Dexter started this 2 years ago to save themselves some money. A no brainer to have everyone start at 8.
Andy Price
Thu, Apr 26, 2012 : 9:32 p.m.
I mistakenly voted this up before I read the nonsense about the minimum wage. Ugh.
Mike
Thu, Apr 26, 2012 : 8:19 p.m.
It's amazing to me that our educators are just discovering this. This information has been available for years and if you have any teeenagers or ever have you know this from experience. But I'd throw millions at it and study it anyhow and then make a long protracted decision after consulting with the teachers unions.
AAW
Thu, Apr 26, 2012 : 9:08 p.m.
Educators have know about this for years, but parents, and staff have some times not agreed on how to make it happen. And by staff I don't mean just teachers.
Constance Colthorp Amrine
Thu, Apr 26, 2012 : 7:53 p.m.
On a side note I think it's a little scary for teens to be walking to school in the dark in the morning for their own safety, when they are walking past wooded areas or in other spots where visibility is difficult. Later start times would help prevent this.
skigrl50
Thu, Apr 26, 2012 : 7:44 p.m.
I don't believe the start times stated in the article are accurate. I believe Huron and Pioneer start at 7:40 and Skyline 7:45.
jns131
Fri, Apr 27, 2012 : 12:01 a.m.
We take AATA because no bus comes near our house and it is easier to just hope the AATA and get there quicker. Otherwise, keep it to the same time frame.
jamullet
Thu, Apr 26, 2012 : 8 p.m.
Which means my daughter leaves our house at 6:45am to catch the bus at 7:05. Believe me, much of the year that means walking to the bus stop in the dark.
Danielle Arndt
Thu, Apr 26, 2012 : 7:56 p.m.
Hi skigirl50, thank you for pointing this out. The article has been updated.
doglover
Thu, Apr 26, 2012 : 7:30 p.m.
You can't fool Mother Nature...
aarog
Thu, Apr 26, 2012 : 7:27 p.m.
I've been wanting this my whole life, then as a parent I've been wanting this the whole time. No need to study it, I don't care. Go in before light sometimes and come out at, say 2:30 at times is fine for adults but kids have needs that can be hard to meet mid-afternoon.
jasna
Thu, Apr 26, 2012 : 7:26 p.m.
i think this should have happened long ago, but suspected that teachers are the ones that resisted since they seem to like the perk of dismissal earlier in the day.
KMHall
Thu, Apr 26, 2012 : 10:59 p.m.
Please talk to the people who advocate for high school sports.
AAW
Thu, Apr 26, 2012 : 9:04 p.m.
It is easy to blame the teachers or schools but you must consider that parents play a part in what happens with schools. So please stop blaming teacher for all that is wrong with our school systems.
Erica
Thu, Apr 26, 2012 : 8:53 p.m.
As a teacher, I can personally tell you that's not true. I'd much rather not have to get up at 5am to get to work and prepare for the day, even if that meant coming home later. It is especially difficult for teachers who are parents of younger children to get them going and find someone to help get kids to school that early.
skigrl50
Thu, Apr 26, 2012 : 7:49 p.m.
Jasna - I totally disagree with your assumption. They have always said the high school start times are because of transportation, after school activities and jobs. I say flip flop high school and elementary schedules. When my kids were little, they were always up very early, in high school, getting them out of bed in the morning was incredibly difficult. AT the high school, my kids were done with school at 2:30 but their sports practices didn't start until 4:00. Seems like a total waste of time...
A2Girl63
Thu, Apr 26, 2012 : 7:18 p.m.
This study will cost how much...
sellers
Thu, Apr 26, 2012 : 11:57 p.m.
Unfortunate cost and good thing to weigh. I'm for no study and do it as a study and use the faculty and student to execute the study. Use it as a teaching and learning opportunity