A continuous cycle five days a week. 7:15am, first period bell ringing, students half awake, and brains not fully alert. Students and teachers often battling early morning get ready and exhaustion. The question still stands, should school start times be changed?
Early in the morning, brains are still not fully developed. Starting school later in the day can help improve students’ performance in school. Their skills and expertise would be stronger and healthier later on in the day.
“If we start school later I believe it would improve learning abilities, since I would be more well rested and of a clearer mind,” junior Madelyn Ellington said.
“Starting school later would help me a lot because early in the morning my brain is not fully awake,” junior Anna Imerman said.
Beyond classroom changes, transportation to school is still a necessary matter to keep in mind. Busses rolling in earlier than usual and students and teachers driving while it’s still dark outside. Having school start later in the day can affect transportation in a more effective and better way.
“It would not affect my mode, but it might make me a more effective driver, since I would be less tired,” Madelyn said.
“It doesn’t really affect me that much since my dad works here, but it would be safer for him to drive during the daylight,” junior Kylie Peterson said.
Later times will not only benefit students but also the teachers. It would present useful opportunities, influence their energy levels, and instructional effectiveness.
“Teachers would arrive later, and might have more retention in school,” Madelyn said.
Administrators and the school board are mainly the ones addressing start times and end times. However, it’s equally important to consider perspectives of those most directly affected, the students.
“A good school start time would be around 9am because it is a reasonable time to be awake by, as it is light outside and it is the schedule of many work places, which would prepare students for after high school,” Madelyn said.
Written by: Isabella Fullerton