Everyday, students come into school tired and yawning, barely awake for their first period class. Not getting enough sleep is common among many high school students. The American Academy of Sleep Medicine states that ¨teens aged 13-18 should be getting 8 to 10 hours a night; however the average amount of sleep is only 6.5 to 7.5 hours according to Better Health.¨ A big cause of this is due to school start times. Early start times affect performance of teens; with a later start it is likely that attendance, grades, moods, and activity levels would improve. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends high schools begin at 8:30 am for adequate sleep. Many students are up late getting home from sports, trying to get their homework done, and do well in school. Students barely have time to do things that they enjoy. 

Teenagers need the chance to get essential hours of sleep, especially during the week while attending school. They are being asked to do work when the brains are not fully functioning yet, and there is not much engagement because the energy level is so low. In an interview with senior student athlete Hayden Fowler, he feels he doesn’t get enough sleep on school nights. He says his attendance and academics would most likely improve if he got better sleep during school nights and was not rushed in the mornings. 60% of student athletes face a moderate to extreme level of stress maintaining athletic performance, academics, and social life. Pushing back the start time would also decrease motor vehicle crashes in the morning. Driving is already risky enough for teens; because of a lack of sleep, they are more likely to crash than drivers in all other age groups. The Department of Transportation found that drivers who’d gotten only five or six hours of sleep were more prone to what he called the “simple lapses in attention”. Fowler says, he “sometimes feels unalert while driving to school right after waking up.” 

Students are not the only ones who suffer from early school start times. Busy parents with multiple children going to multiple schools have to deal with getting their high schoolers to class on time, then deal with waking their elementary kids with later school start times up for school as well. On top of a busy morning schedule, most parents have to make it to work by 9am which leaves no time for themselves. Sarah Williams, a busy parent of three kids who attend two different high schools and one elementary school states, “Our family members are not morning people. We tend to be very stressed and tired at the start of our days due to a hectic morning schedule which leads to us being late and irritated with each other. I would absolutely support a later start time for high schoolers.”

Overall those who do not get enough sleep, students in particular, can suffer from symptoms of depression, poor academic performance, not engaging in physical activity and unhealthy risk behaviors. Those who have a healthy sleep schedule live a healthier lifestyle. Some benefits include better attention, memory and learning habits, mental health, and emotional regulation. Pushing back school just an hour will still allow students to have time to do their after school activities while improving their in school performance.