Teens Sleeping In and School Starting Time

There have been studies that say that if schools would start later in the morning, teens would do better. The premise is that the teens are not really awake and able to function until later in the morning. By starting classes at 9 am or even 10 am, teens would be able to better comprehend the classes, improve attendance and improve their grades.

More teens are observed outside the home late into the night. Actually that should be stated as into the early morning such as 3 am and 4 am. It is no wonder they are not awake at 8 am, when most schools start, when they haven’t been in bed for more than four hours!

At the same time these same teens are complaining that they get into trouble at night because there is “nothing to do” and this comes from large cities as well as the small. What do they expect when 1) they choose to be awake when almost everything is closed and asleep when everything is open 2) they, with a minority exception, do nothing to create and support appropriate teen activities? If it were legal, how many of these sleep in teens would take a second shift job at the local factory? It would more closely match their sleeping schedule and give them something to do in those late night hours.

Saying that school should start later in the day to accommodate the sleep in teens is just like saying that the ceiling needs to be waterproofed to stop it from leaking. The problem isn’t the leaky ceiling; it is the roof that needs to be repaired. The problem isn’t sleeping in; it is not going to bed.

Finally, it is generally said that high school and college is to prepare people for “real life on their own.” How many people in real life get to sleep in till the mid morning? Wouldn’t it be better if the schools hold students to the real world standards and prepare them for the rest of their lives?