An early school start time in Half Hollow Hills High School East is an issue that can impact adolescents who are continuing to develop and need a good night’s sleep in order to be productive in school and throughout the day. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 93% of high schools started their school day before 8:30 a.m. While this is a problem that is evident nationwide, it is something that should be tackled on a smaller scale first to implement action as soon as possible. Having an early school start time is a problem that needs to be addressed.

There are many scientific findings about adolescents and their sleep. The National Sleep Foundation suggests that teenagers get an average of 8 to 10 hours of sleep a night and how the biological shift makes it harder for adolescents at this age to fall asleep earlier than 11:00. A lack of sleep impacts different functions, such as learning, problem-solving, and focusing. According to Start School Later, published by the Washington Post, oftentimes, times close to a third of students end up napping in class because the first bell rings before 8:00 a.m.

Use original sources only.
Order your custom essay on

Proposal: Tackling Early School Starts for Adolescent Health

Personal Experience: The Struggles of Early School Starts

This problem not only impacts students, it also impacts teachers and parents. While I was a student at High School East, I found myself struggling to wake up in the morning because of the early start time. My first class started at 7:19 a.m., meaning that it would still be pitch black outside when I woke up in the morning. My daily schedule included school from 7:19 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., clubs until 3:00 p.m., dance team practice until 6:00 p.m., and then get home at 6:15 p.m. By the time I got home, I would have to complete hours of homework from my classes, have dinner, shower, study, and make sure I got a good night’s sleep all within a night.

As I became an upperclassman student, this school-life balance became even harder. I had to take driver’s education, ACT tutoring once or twice a week, and prepare my college applications. While I was successful in high school, I noticed myself sleeping long hours during the weekend to make up for the lack of sleep I got during the week.

I was not the only student who struggled with the issue of a normal sleep schedule. No matter what classes you were taking, clubs you were involved in, and other activities you needed to do after you returned home from school, I found that many students like myself found themselves falling into horrible sleep patterns as well, leading to a lack of sleep. When I asked my best friend Shelby Gosset if she had the same struggle, she said, “I slept an average of 5 hours a night because of all of my AP assignments and then had to stay after school for clubs and extra help to ensure I was utilizing as many resources as I could to be successful”.

Shelby and I had very different academic course loads and after-school activities, yet we both experienced a form of sleep deprivation. Many students would have to sleep in a few periods and come in late to catch up on sleep. Parents often struggled with getting their kids up because their bodies were so tired.

The Wider Implications: Beyond Just Student Sleep

It would impact students’ grades, and teachers would become frustrated that students would not be in class as frequently or walk in late. When my parents met with my teachers at conferences, my teachers that I had in the morning would speak about my attendance and how it was impacting my performance in the class. My parents would then have to speak with my guidance counselor each year to talk about the issues I had with sleep to ensure I had a class in the morning that was lighter, meaning that it was not a core class such as Science or Math. For two years, I had math first period, which was not easy for me. I already struggled in those areas, to begin with, and my constant lack of sleep made it harder for me to concentrate in these classes.

The reason why this issue has not been addressed is that many teachers in the school feel that this early start time would not work because of after-school activities, afternoon sports, and other factors that the district would need to handle that need to be taken into consideration beyond adolescents wanting more time to sleep. They also feel that maturity has to do with students being focused in an early class as it prepares them for the real world because they will eventually need to wake up early for a job and be alert at that hour.

Push for Change: Community Efforts and Petitions

My parents have tried to address it with my guidance counselor, along with other parents, creating petitions to help fix this problem. I am i