Opinion
Later start could benefit students
By Wyatt Anderson
Published March 16, 2023
Students are famously tired in the morning, and not getting enough sleep is commonly the cause. Many say that it is the student’s responsibility to get enough sleep, but that is also sometimes not possible. For example, I work weeknights sometimes, and I get home at about 9:30 pm when I work. If I have a half an hour of homework for each college class I have, that would be an hour of homework. Now it is 10:30 pm. I need to shower and make my bed, now it is 11:00 pm. If I go to bed then, and I have to wake up at 7:00 to make my bus, I get exactly 8 hours of sleep. 0 free time from the time I wake up to the time I go to bed, and that’s not even including chores. It is the same problem for those in sports, where most of their night is taken up by practice or games. This is just one of the many reasons schools should start later. Another reason would be safety.
Many students in 11th and 12th grade drive themselves to school, and here in Minnesota road conditions are mediocre at best in the winter. Deer, ice, snow, poor driver ability, etc. all contribute to increased accidents and difficulty driving in the morning. Moving school start times later would not eliminate all these issues, however it would make things easier. Greater visibility, more time for snowplows to make the roads safe, far less deer, etc.
One last thing, students would most likely get better grades if school started later. Think of how many students are either asleep or struggling to stay awake in first and second hour classes, and think how they may be affected if they got even another half hour of sleep.
Junior Daniel Scullard said that it would be nice having school open later, but you would also have less time after school. He also said that if school got out later, he would have issues with his job, and that he may need to quit if his work can’t schedule him around it. This is a valid concern, and definitely an issue that would come up if school started later for some people. This could possibly be addressed by informing owners of the problem; however, I am not sure if all owners could adjust. A common thought shared between us is the improvement in first and second hour classes. Teachers as well as some students have observed that earlier classes are far “less awake” than the other hours of the day, and this may solve it. All in all, I think school should start later for the reasons above. More sleep, a safer drive into school, better grades, and more alert first and second hours.
Published March 16, 2023
Students are famously tired in the morning, and not getting enough sleep is commonly the cause. Many say that it is the student’s responsibility to get enough sleep, but that is also sometimes not possible. For example, I work weeknights sometimes, and I get home at about 9:30 pm when I work. If I have a half an hour of homework for each college class I have, that would be an hour of homework. Now it is 10:30 pm. I need to shower and make my bed, now it is 11:00 pm. If I go to bed then, and I have to wake up at 7:00 to make my bus, I get exactly 8 hours of sleep. 0 free time from the time I wake up to the time I go to bed, and that’s not even including chores. It is the same problem for those in sports, where most of their night is taken up by practice or games. This is just one of the many reasons schools should start later. Another reason would be safety.
Many students in 11th and 12th grade drive themselves to school, and here in Minnesota road conditions are mediocre at best in the winter. Deer, ice, snow, poor driver ability, etc. all contribute to increased accidents and difficulty driving in the morning. Moving school start times later would not eliminate all these issues, however it would make things easier. Greater visibility, more time for snowplows to make the roads safe, far less deer, etc.
One last thing, students would most likely get better grades if school started later. Think of how many students are either asleep or struggling to stay awake in first and second hour classes, and think how they may be affected if they got even another half hour of sleep.
Junior Daniel Scullard said that it would be nice having school open later, but you would also have less time after school. He also said that if school got out later, he would have issues with his job, and that he may need to quit if his work can’t schedule him around it. This is a valid concern, and definitely an issue that would come up if school started later for some people. This could possibly be addressed by informing owners of the problem; however, I am not sure if all owners could adjust. A common thought shared between us is the improvement in first and second hour classes. Teachers as well as some students have observed that earlier classes are far “less awake” than the other hours of the day, and this may solve it. All in all, I think school should start later for the reasons above. More sleep, a safer drive into school, better grades, and more alert first and second hours.