School Should Start Later In the Day
Sleep deprivation is a common chronic health problem among students. Although society views sleep as a luxury that ambitious people cannot afford, it important to understand that enough sleep is a biological necessity for good health. When many students struggle to wake up in the morning, it does not mean that they are lazy and they are legitimately tired. For teens sleeping for less than 8.5 hours is detrimental to their health, and this could affect their mental and physical health, and academic performance. Although teens need to sleep an average of 9 hours every night for optimal performance and brain development, most students sleep less than 7 hours every school night and most of them end up feeling exhausted during the day. For students to perform optimally in class, schools should start later in the day.
Most teens have poor sleep habits that deprive them of enough hours of quality sleep. They have hectic schedules with afterschool activities and homework hours. When this is combined with school start times, most teens struggle to wake up for school. They feel like it is in the middle of the night and that they have had little sleep to feel rested. There are serious consequences associated with sleep deprivation for the students. Although the students will spend a great portion of every day in school, they cannot maximize the learning opportunities provided by the education system. Lack of enough sleep impairs their ability to pay attention, cope with stress, solve problems, and retain information. When students go to school very early in the morning, hence lacking enough sleep, they are likely to experience irritability, forgetfulness, delayed reaction time, clumsiness, depressed mood, and difficulties in learning new concepts. It is not effective to spend several hours in school when the students are not benefiting.
Most teenagers have a lot of struggles waking up and handling their school responsibilities. Most of them are tired and cannot complete most of the class tasks in the mornings. To ensure that students are able to cope with their academic responsibilities, it is important for schools to start later in the day. This would allow them to get enough sleep and have adequate time to prepare for classes. As a result, teenagers and kids will have better test scores, grades, and consistency in key subject areas. Since their school responsibilities will be matching their biological clocks, there will be reduced dropout rates, reduced truancy, and improved attendance rates.
Starting school later in the day could boost individual academic performances. Most students have to stay up late to complete their homework as well as study for most of their classes. Waking up early will deprive them of enough sleep and this will not only affect their ability to focus, but it will also deny them the time for processing the information in the classroom environment. It is important to have an education system that puts into consideration the fact that the students require adequate rest for them to be productive in classes. When students get enough sleep the risks of distraction are low and this enables them to learn new information easily, hence, better grades. By pushing the school start time later in the day, students will have enough time to prepare for the upcoming classes and they will be able to stay alert when in class.
When schools start too early, most students lack the time of having a healthy breakfast because they are in a rush to get to school. It is difficult for any student to pay attention and learn new concepts when they are hungry. Starting schools later in the day gives students a better chance to eat healthier breakfast than having to eat a prepackaged item. This would be a way of promoting better personal nutrition and a healthier weigh, which improves the chances of a better individual learning experience.
Students might forget some of the essential learning materials at home since they are always in a hurry every school morning trying not to be late for classes. Teenagers and kids do not have adequate time to prepare for classes when they are forced to wake up early and go to school. This limits their concentration ability and makes learning ineffective. Every student needs to have a reasonable time to prepare for school to make sure they have packed everything they need and that they are ready to learn new concepts every school day. When adolescents are not experiencing sleep deprivation, they do not have to depend on caffeine during the day to stay alert.
Sleep and rest are essential requirements for boosting students’ academic performance. Allowing schools to start later in the day will provide students with the time they need to complete their homework and handle other responsibilities at home. The education system should consider improving the welfare of students by ensuring that they have enough sleep before they start classes every school day.