Sleep, Safety, Drugs, Teen Pregnancy,
And Other Reasons to Change School TimesDiana Zuckerman, Ph.D.
In the 1950's and 1960's, most schools started between 8:30-9:00 and many students barely stayed awake all day. Today, many high schools start at 7:30 or earlier, and a growing number of studies show that these early school schedules can undermine teenagers' ability to learn, to drive safely, to get along with others, and can even increase the likelihood of smoking, drug abuse, and teen pregnancy.
Starting as early as ages 8-12, many children's biological "circadian" rhythms change, and they start staying up later and sleeping later in the mornings. These pubertal changes tend to start earlier for African Americans than for whites, so that bell times may be a problem for many middle school children as well, especially African Americans. There are individual differences, but most adolescents "naturally" feel awake later at night, making it difficult to go to sleep before 10 p.m. Sleep researchers have found that most adolescents and adults need more than 9 hours of sleep: we can "get used to" less, and we might think we're adjusted to less, but our brains and bodies won't be doing as well with less sleep. Those of us who routinely get 6 hours of sleep or less are functioning just like someone who stayed up 48 hours straight after getting 8 hours of sleep on a regular basis.
Learning. Falling asleep in class makes it impossible to learn, but that is not the biggest problem for sleepy students. More common, less noticeable, and therefore much more of a problem is that students who don't get 8-9 hours of sleep find it more difficult to concentrate in class, and their ability to remember what they read or hear is impaired.
Safety. Sleep deprivation is similar to alcohol in its effect on judgment, reaction time, and driving skill. And like alcohol, the teen or adult impaired from lack of sleep is unlikely to realize it. Sleep deprivation is a problem for all drivers, but especially inexperienced ones. Falling asleep at the wheel can also be fatal, for the driver, passengers, and bystanders. Remember, a one-second delay in pressing the break while going 60 mph will send your car an additional 88 feet!
Smoking, Drinking, Sex, and Drugs. The same impaired judgment that can cause car accidents can also result in making bad choices. Teens are easily swayed by peer pressure, and lack of sleep makes them even less able to "just say no" or think ahead about negative consequences. This can result in all kinds of problem behaviors. The fact that high schools end early and many teens are unsupervised from approximately 2:30 until 5:30 p.m. (even later in many suburbs) also creates the opportunity to make bad choices. Ask your local police department when teens are getting in trouble, and they will inevitably talk about the unsupervised after school hours.
Teens use caffeine, nicotine, and other stimulants to stay awake, and the more they use, the later they stay up, and the more tired they are when they have to wake up for school in the morning. Soft drinks such as Mountain Dew and Surge, have even more caffeine than coffee or cola.
Conflicts with Family and Friends. Everyone knows that tired babies are cranky. Research shows that tired adolescents and adults are also cranky. This can contribute to constant tension between family members.
You don't need to be a research whiz to get the picture: kids need to get up before dawn to get to school on time. They have trouble paying attention in class and may be short-tempered with teachers and other students. After school, they may have a job, athletics, or spend time with their friends. After dinner, they may finally do their homework (they feel awake and productive, but they unfortunately aren't, so it takes longer), continue their part-time jobs, or be with their friends. By 9:00 p.m., when they should be going to sleep to get the 9 hours of sleep they need, they are wide-awake. So they stay up until 10:30 or later (perhaps much later), virtually guaranteeing that they will be sleep deprived when they get up at dawn the next day.
An earlier version of this article was published in the Research Watch column in Youth Today, November 1999.
