Should High School Start Too Early

School Starts Too Early Schools across the U.S. have an average start time of 8:03 A.M. “Among an estimated 39,700 U.S. public middle, high, and combined schools (with an estimated total enrollment of 26.3 million students), the average start time was 8:03 a.m. Forty-two states reported that 75%–100% of their public schools had early start times.” (Wheaton). U.S. high and middle schools start too early because students aren't getting the amount of sleep they need. Schools start too early in the morning making it hard for kids to stay awake during class. The average teen doesn't feel tired until around 10:45pm and if school starts at 7:50am that's about seven hours of sleep, which isn't healthy, because teens need at least nine hours of sleep. In fact, "Starting school times later allows students to get the optimal amount of sleep, which is around 8.5 to 9.5 hours. Data suggest that two out of three high school students sleep less than eight hours a night" (Fischetti). Students are not getting enough sleep because schools start too early. More sleep could improve the
student's grades and test scores. So, because students need more sleep schools should start a little later. School should start later because of the health benefits for students.
For example, "Lack of sleep can lead to a cascade of health issues like higher body weight, lower academic performance and a greater likelihood for substance abuse, medical experts say" (Sifferlin). This quote proves that teens without sleep could be affected by health issues. Students may also have weight problems, not able to stay awake during school, and sometimes low grades. For some kids it's hard to sleep early, so this is making it hard for them to want to get up. While some people believe that schools should start early instead of later in the morning. The reality is some teens can't sleep at night making it hard for them to wake up at six am to get ready for the bus at seven am. Some teens can't focus in school without nine hours of proper
sleep. Starting school later could potentially raise test scores and grade averages. "Switching middle school start times by 30 minutes or more to after eight a.m. in Wake County, NC was associated with increased math and reading test scores, with disadvantaged students benefiting most" Starting school later has better statistics than starting earlier. Students wouldn't fall asleep in class as much, they have better test scores and better grades in general. The overall goal of school is to succeed so if starting later is working why not switch. If grades have a dramatic difference from starting later than earlier maybe schools should consider switching. Why I chose my topic is because, I have trouble waking up early on school mornings, so I could relate to the topic. I've learned how to properly persuade someone to think what I'm thinking, and to present about a persuasive topic. The hardest part of this process had to of been the research, and finding works cited. Yes, I feel as if I did well presenting, and writing this essay. Yes, I think this is an example of my best work, because I put my best effort into research, writing, and presenting.