It is back to school time, which for many young people is way too early! No, not early in the calendar year (though I still can not wrap my head around the fact that school has to start in August now) – rather, too early in the time of day. The study’s findings, printed in Scientific American, state:
Biological research shows that circadian rhythms shift during the teen years, pushing boys and girls to stay up later at night and sleep later into the morning. The phase shift, driven by a change in melatonin in the brain, begins around age 13, gets stronger by ages 15 and 16, and peaks at ages 17, 18 or 19.
Does that affect learning? It does, according to Kyla Wahlstrom, director of the Center for Applied Research and Educational Improvement at the University of Minnesota. She published a large study in February that tracked more than 9,000 students in eight public high schools in Minnesota, Colorado and Wyoming. After one semester, when school began at 8:35 a.m. or later, grades earned in math, English, science and social studies typically rose a quarter step—for example, up halfway from B to B+.
And these findings were not the only ones to prove that school should start later:
In various studies, school districts that shifted from 7:30 to 8:00 a.m. saw more benefits than those that shifted from 7:15 to 7:45 a.m. Studies in Brazil, Italy and Israel showed similar improvements in grades. The key is allowing teens to get at least eight hours of sleep, preferably nine. In Europe, it is rare for high school to start before 9:00 a.m.
And why does school in The U.S. have to start so early? Some say that leaves enough time for after-school activities such as athletics, clubs, and band. And while they head football coach might be bummed that he only gets to make the team run 50 laps instead of 100, school districts that have made the change claim that the activities worked out fine for students and those districts have not changed back.
Of course, something that seems so easy to fix won’t be fixed for years (if ever) for most school districts, so in the meantime I guess first and second period will just look a little something like this:
