I believe that schools, specifically DHS, should start class around 8:20-8:30 a.m., instead of the typical 7:30-7:40 a.m.. Doing this simple change would lead to increased academic performance, mood, and a myriad of other mental and physical benefits for both students and teachers.

Let’s face it, most high school students aren’t getting eight hours of sleep, which is the recommended amount of sleep for adolescents.  During adolescence, the body’s circadian rhythm changes. Due to this, adolescents have a harder time falling asleep early, and an even harder time waking up in the morning. Most high school students wake up at around 5:30 to 6:00 a.m. because they need adequate time to properly prepare for the school day.

It is clear that most high school students are not going to be going to bed at 9 p.m., which would get them their eight hours. Most students are going to bed at around 11-12 p.m., giving them around five to six hours of sleep per night. This is not enough sleep for most students to perform well. 

Getting five to six hours of sleep for one night is not that big of a problem, but schooling is going on for five days per week, leading to students losing nearly a day’s worth of sleep. This causes a myriad of problems. Research conducted by the American Physcological Association shows that lack of sleep causes poor judgment, lack of motivation, depressed mood, reduced alertness, risky behavior, and an increased risk of suicide. This will obviously cause students to be in a more depressed mood throughout the week, even leading to depression.

It’s not just the students that would benefit from the time change, however. Although it’s rarer, staff members can suffer from similar symptoms when they lack sleep. The time change would also benefit teachers, as the increased sleep would make them more alert, which is likely to make them teach their classes better. Getting more sleep would also reduce car crashes, as students, teachers, parents, and bus drivers would be more alert on the road. (Source)

The lack of sleep causes students to look for ways to boost their alertness. This leads to them having a dependency on caffeine, as they begin taking it on a daily basis and they feel like they need it to function. Caffeine is one of the worst legal addictions, and it is a growing problem in adolescents. The early start times are the main cause of this.

States including California and Florida have passed legislation that forces school to start later and many other states have begun to consider the legislation. They observed what happened when they delayed the start time from 8:00 a.m. to 8:30 a.m., and daytime sleepiness, depressed mood, and caffeine use significantly decreased. A poll was conducted, and the number of students who were able to get eight hours of sleep jumped from 18% to 44%. 

I have experienced this myself. Waking up feeling terrible and needing to take an energy drink to get through the day. It’s clear to me that DHS needs to change. It is time to modernize and realize that the schedule DHS has presented is negatively impacting students to a degree that has become intolerable to most.