by Sanae Ittu

The hardest part of school isn’t the homework — it’s the early time that forces teens to function on almost no sleep. The CDC reports that 7 out of 10 high school students don’t get enough sleep. When teens are tired, we don’t learn well, and early bells make the problem worse.

Studies consistently show that early start time leads to more stress, lower attention, and high chances of students drifting off in class. The American Academy of Pediatrics confirmed that early time causes chronic sleep loss which links to higher stress, irritability, and difficulty paying attention in class.

Sleep deprivation doesn’t just make teens feel tired, but affects our academic performance. Oxford academic researchers using EEG data from high school students found that students in early morning classes had lower attentiveness and performed worse than mid-morning students. Teachers noticed right away that students have unfinished assignments, slower participation, and struggle to stay alert during instruction. Early start times make learning feel harder than it should be.

The main benefit of starting school later is better attendance and grades. The University of Washington Study decided to test out starting school later to see the effects  it has on students. In the same study, after school start times were pushed back, final grades were 4.5 percent higher and first period absences dropped. There are also more benefits like improved mood and fewer car crashes among youth.

Early start times also take a toll on students’ moods. When teens don’t get enough sleep, it shows through low energy, irritability, and difficulty staying positive throughout the day. In early classes, it’s common to see students with their heads down or barely awake, but in later classes those same students are noticeably more alert and engaged. When someone starts the day exhausted, it becomes harder to focus, stay motivated, or complete work until they feel fully awake again.

Some may argue that teens can just go to sleep early, but this would not work because teens can’t just go to bed early; our bodies naturally stay up later at night. 

Dr. Mary Carskadon stated during a PBS Frontline interview, “there is another part of their brain..the biological timing system, or the circadian clock… But when they start the day with the empty bank…they really should be home in bed sleeping, not sleeping in the classroom.”