The Pros And Cons Of Later School Start Times

For years now there has been a battle raging homes across the nation. It starts at the crack of dawn, or sometimes, even before dawn. Usually parents are the victors, but not always. But whether they ultimately win the battle, there is always a huge loss on their part. The loss is their sanity. Who are they fighting? Teenagers. There those people in the world that live far beyond the realm of reality and their kids wake up cheerfully every morning to the sound of their own alarm clock and prepare themselves for the day with little to no harm to man or beast. But not in most homes. Many parents in this predicament were thrilled when a ray of hope was cast their way. That ray of sunshine, although it was just a theory, was the idea of later school start times for teens. It was brilliant! Who had come up with this theory and how could one throw their hat into the ring in support of such a plan? At first glimpse it seems that this could clearly never become a reality. As excited as most parents are at the thought of not having to chisel their teens from their bed each morning at “O-dark-thirty”, there is doubt that there is enough clinical and practical evidence that this is a good idea. Getting such legislation past the school boards and lawmakers may be a

Without a good attendance record, no amount of intelligence will compensate for missed time in the classroom. Attendance rates improved dramatically in the schools that have implemented later start times. “... attendance rates for all students in grades 9, 10, and 11 improved in the years from 1995 to 2000, with the greatest rate of improvement for grade 9 students.” (Wahlstrom, Kyla. "Later High-School Start Times Still Working." Education Digest, vol. 68, no. 6, Feb. 2003, p. 49. EBSCOhost,