This document discusses the negative impacts of early school start times on teenage students' sleep and health. It summarizes multiple studies that show sleep deprivation in teens can hurt academic performance, mental health, and safety. Communities that have delayed start times to later in the morning report students getting more sleep, higher test scores, fewer car accidents, and decreased dropout rates. While teens need 9+ hours of sleep per night, early starts mean they average only 7 hours. The document argues schools should adapt start times to better match teenage circadian rhythms and need for more rest.

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David Hibbert
Mrs. Webb
Honors High School English: Period 5
25 Mar. 2007
Wake Up Woes
A teenager’s sleepiness in the morning is more than just detrimental to their mood, new
studies have proven that sleep deprivation in teens can affect everything from test scores, to the
likelihood of getting in a car accident. Despite the fact that people believe that students who start
and get out of school later have less time, schools with later start times have more attendance of
after school activities, and students report being happier and more alert throughout the day. As a
principal of a school with a later start time, Mrs. Manderfeld states in her interview, “The most
important benefit of a late start time is that high school students function better with more sleep”
(Manderfeld). Sleep deprivation in teens is a serious problem in our own community, and it is
imperative that we take the steps to change our high schools to a later start time to meet the
needs of the students of Poway.
Early high school start times are more than just harmful to a teen’s learning abilities;
research has shown that sleep deprivation caused by these early start times can also result in
severe consequences for an adolescent’s health. “Sleep deprivation can lead to everything from
poor health to depression to a higher risk of car accidents” (Ruder). The adverse affects of sleep
deprivation worsen the already confusing teenage years. Sleep doesn’t positively affect your
body until the body goes into the REM or rapid eye movement stage of sleep; restlessly lying in
bed doesn’t count as sleep. “The loss of REM, or rapid eye movement sleep (a period of intense
sleep) can result in increased irritability, anxiety and depression, decreased socialization, reduced
concentration and decreased ability to handle complex tasks and to be creative” (“Adolescent

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Sleep Needs”). Since teenager’s biological clocks are set to fall asleep later and wake up later,
the early start times dramatically reduce the amount of REM sleep they will actually receive.
Requiring teens to attend school so early in the morning decreases the chance they will have
gotten a good night’s sleep and jeopardizes their performance at school. “Studies have shown,
for example, that sleep deprivation is associated with memory deficits, impaired performance
and alertness, and delayed responses” (“Adolescent Sleep Needs”). Forcing teens to learn while
sleep deprived greatly reduces the chance that they will retain the information being taught to
them. A later school start time would allow teens to get the much needed sleep they require at
this important time of their lives. “Irritability, lack of self confidence and mood swings are often
common in a teen, but sleep deprivation makes it worse” (“Adolescent Sleep”). Not getting the
required amount of sleep is detrimental to a teen’s mental and physical health. The sleep
deprivation caused by early school start times greatly reduces the chance that the teen will
benefit from classroom instruction. Clearly a minor change in our school system can have a long
lasting positive impact on student performance.
The teenage mind has many difficulties functioning early in the morning. According to
Dr. William Dement, “Sending a kid to school at 7 a.m. is the equivalent of sending an adult to
work at 4 a.m. in the morning” (Diconsiglio). Clearly sending teens early to school is not in the
best interest of the child, considering their internal clock is set differently than adults. “A
University of Minnesota study found that 20 percent of all teens fall asleep in their first two
hours of class” (Diconsiglio). Making students go to school so early sometimes causes their body
to make up extra sleep time during class. These early start times are also harmful to test scores.
“Almost all standardized tests in high schools begin at 8AM. Because this is when adolescents
show their poorest performance levels, a change is clearly needed and would be relatively easy to
negotiate” (Hansen). Making teens take tests during their worst time of day doesn’t pay off.

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“One study found that afternoon reading instruction produced the greatest increase in reading
scores as compared to morning instruction” (“Adolescent Sleep Needs”). Certainly it is in the
best interest of our community to improve the test scores for our teens, and moving the start time
would have a positive impact. “Studies show that the changes taking place in their bodies
requires more sleep and they may be physically challenged to getting up early in the morning”
(“Adolescent Sleep”). Many people need to realize that their teen does not have problems getting
out of bed because they’re “lazy”, it is because during that particular time of their development
getting up early is incredibly demanding on their body. A teen’s mind can greatly benefit from a
later start time, and if the time were moved back we could expect more alertness in the
classroom, and higher test scores at the school.
The communities that have changed the school start time to a later school start time have
noticed many positive changes in the wellbeing of their teens. “Influenced by sleep studies,
Minneapolis changed its high schools' starting times from 7:15 to 8:40 five years ago. Dr. Kyla
Wahlstrom, a sleep researcher at the University of Minnesota, notes that tardiness is down by
nearly 5 percent” (Diconsiglio). Allowing teens to sleep in later makes it less difficult for them to
get up in the mornings, thus increasing the chance they will get to school on time. “In
Minnesota, Wahlstrom found that SAT scores rose more than 100 points since area schools
began starting later” (Diconsiglio). The more rested teens are, the more likely they are to do well
in class, thus increasing their chance of getting higher test scores. “Dropout rates have declined
by more than 10 percent” (Diconsiglio). Teens who receive more sleep are happier and healthier,
the later school start time enhances their ability to learn and reduces the chance they will decide
to leave school. “Crash rates in one county in that state dropped nearly 16 percent when high
school class hours were pushed later” (“Sleepy”). Teens who get more sack time are also more
likely to be alert, and less likely to get into car accidents. The communities with later school start

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times have noticed their teens have improved attentiveness, learning capabilities, and alertness to
complex tasks such as driving a car. By doing something as simple as moving their start times,
several high school communities around the country have noticed drastic improvements in the
lives of their teens.
Many studies have supported that a later start time will positively impact a teen’s
learning experience. “15% of teens sleep 8 1/2 hours or more 26% sleep 6 ½ hours or less. Forty
percent go to bed after 11 p.m.” (Diconsiglio). Teens have to go to bed late because of extra
curricular activities and homework. By making school start later, teens will be able to receive
more sleep during the night. “SELF-REPORTED AVERAGE AMOUNT OF SLEEP ON
SCHOOL NIGHTS: Mostly A's 7 hours and 22 minutes, mostly B's 7 hours and 21 minutes,
mostly C's 7 hours and 4 minutes, mostly D's 6 hours and 48 minutes or lower” (Diconsiglio). As
shown by this study, students who receive more sleep get better grades in school and are able to
be more successful. “Teens require about nine-and-a-half hours of sleep a night, but average just
over seven. Only 15 percent get at least eight-and-a-half hours of sack time” (Diconsiglio). Teens
are continually deprived of sleep because of early school start times, they aren’t even coming
close to the minimum of sleep required for people their age. “According to one study, 20% of all
high school students fall asleep in school. Additional research has shown that over 50% of
students report being most alert after 3:00 p.m.” (“Adolescent Sleep Needs”). If teens were able
to get more sleep during the night they would be more rested for class the next day and probably
not fall asleep in class as much, also, teens are most alert later in the day. The studies that have
evaluated a later start time support that there are many benefits when teens get more sleep. Our
district needs to reconsider what time our high schools should start by looking at the
positive data from other schools around the country.

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Evidence from studies, sleep experts, and communities with later school start times, have
suggested that it is imperative that we change our start times to adapt to the needs of the students.
Our sleep deprived teens are putting their mental and physical health at stake. By simply
changing our start times, we can expect to see, happier, and healthier teens in our community. If
the Poway Unified School District wants to maintain its competitive edge, it should consider
changing the current start time of its high schools based on the compelling research about
adolescent sleep.

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Works Cited
“Adolescent Sleep.” The Sleep Well. Stanford, 5 Oct. 1999.Web. 12 Mar. 2007.
<http://www.stanford.edu/~dement/adolescent.html>.
"Adolescent Sleep Needs and School Performance." Research & Educational Services. New
York State United Teachers, 9 Nov.1998. Web. 12 Mar. 2007.
<http://nysut.org/research/bulletins/981202adolescentsleep>.
Diconsiglio, John. "Let Me Sleep! The High School Opening Bell Often Rings Before a Teen's
Internal Alarm Clock Does." New York Times Upfront 11 Feb. 2002: 14+
Student Resource Center - Junior. Web. 8 Feb. 2007. <http://find.galegroup.com >.
Hansen, Martha, et al. "The Impact of School Daily Schedule on Adolescent Sleep." Pediatrics
115.6 (2005): 1555+. General Reference Center Gold. Web. 7 Feb. 2007
<http://find.galegroup.com>.
Manderfeld, Mary. Email Interview. 8 Mar. 2007.
Ruder, Kate. "A Good Night's Sleep: Sleep Loss and Disorders can Affect not only your Quality
of Life, but your Health as Well. (TYPE 1 TYPE 2)." Diabetes Forecast 59.10 (2006):
56+. General Reference Center Gold. Web. 15 Feb. 2007. <http://find.galegroup.com>.
"Sleepy Teens at School." Christian Science Monitor 12 Nov. 2002: 10. General
Reference Center Gold. Web. 15 Feb. 2007. <http://find.galegroup.com>.