Science behind sleeping in

Who wouldn't love to sleep in a little later in the morning?

Not any teenager that I know, that's for sure. In fact, research shows that teenagers need considerably more sleep than children or adults in order to perform up to their abilities.

Sleep experts agree that the biology of adolescents is such that they are inclined to stay up until 11 p.m. and sleep for at least nine hours.

This is just one of many reasons that high schools should have a later start time than they do now.

To put this into perspective, Carson High School's bell rings at 8 a.m. for first period and 7 a.m. for zero period.

According to Dr. Mary A. Carskadon of Brown University Medical School, these early start times are definitely not conducive to teenagers. She feels "early school start times are just abusive. These kids may be up and at school at 8:30, but I'm convinced their brains are back on the pillow at home."

Her study backs up this conclusion. Carskadon and Dr. Amy R. Wolfson surveyed more than 3,000 high school students in 1998 and came to the conclusion that lack of sleep can cause accidents, jeopardize students' grades and lead to emotional problems.

In a study of students in Minnesota school districts, K. Wahlstrom, G. Wrobel and P. Kubow came to a similar conclusion. They found that "fewer students report falling asleep in class, arriving late to school because of oversleeping, and feeling tired during the day" in the Minneapolis school that does not start until 9:40 a.m. The students also reported their grades improved, which may be attributed to the additional sleep.

Not only is a later start time beneficial to students, but it is also helpful for teachers.

Minneapolis teachers reported that the 9:40 a.m. start has had a positive effect on their day. They are able to spend more time preparing for class in the mornings, participate in faculty meetings before school and, of course, sleep later.

The evidence points toward a positive change as a result of a later start for high school students. But many districts have been hesitant to make this change.

Plenty argue a late start school day causes problems with bus scheduling and after-school activities. But there are solutions to these problems.

First, to take on the bus issue, the start times of elementary schools could be reversed with high schools. The buses could first pick up the elementary school students, who would begin around 8 a.m., then get the high schoolers.

Secondly, to tackle the extracurricular activity argument, most sporting events do not even begin until 3:45 p.m.

Even if school didn't get out until 2:55 p.m. with the later start, athletes would still have sufficient time to make it to their games. Overall, there aren't any compelling reasons to start high school classes before 9 a.m., and school districts will have support if they decide to start their high schools later.

U.S. Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif., has introduced a bill to provide federal grants to help schools implementing a later start policy.

The Connecticut Legislature is even going so far as to consider a bill that would prohibit public schools from starting before 8:30 a.m.

A trend is developing in the education of teenagers. If it catches on remains to be seen, but high schools would be hard-pressed to find a student who didn't wish his or her day could start a little later.