Should schools start so early?

Well, here in the desert of Arizona(note, this does not apply to northern Arizona), air conditioning is simply a must. It's not debated. It's there and you never really think about life without it.

 

I don't mind because we have air conditioning in our schools. But I do agree for those that don't. That's torture!

I'll try to find the info on the teen sleep cycle tomorrow. I've got to go to bed now.

-sj loves kevin spacey

 

For schools that do have AC, it would be cheeper to start later in the year, because the bills are probably really high.

air conditioning is simply a must. It's not debated. It's there and you never really think about life without it.

I hear that. I live in Texas, and I've never really thought about life without AC. Unfortunatly, when I was in grade school, the second story AC would frequently not work during the hottest days, and now my high school is hot when it's hot outside, and cold during the winter. It seems they can never get it right.

 

None of the schools around here have AC, but none of them start until September either. Still, I remember from when I went to school, it was really hot in September and June with no AC.

Since I live in the Northeast, they'd never put AC in schools, since it's only needed about a month to a month and a half out of the school year. (First half of September, most of June)

 

Edit: Nevermind.

 

I think it's a bad idea for schools to start in August, since most of them have no air conditioning. How well can kids learn if they're melting? The way the weather is here right now, I'd be sooo miserable without air.

Try being in Australia. They are starting to understand the need for AC, but even schools out west where a 'warm day' will be 35-40C they don't have air conditioning. It makes for an absolute swelter-house. Even in Brissie (where I live) when the temp gets really high for a couple of days they just start sending kids home....

Back to my earlier comment. Our schools get out at 3pm. So your days are effectively longer then ours too. That would just make for tired kids anyway!!

Kit

 

My school starts at 7:15. That is way to early. Most of the time I don't even remember what goes on in first period. Hell, I barely remember what I had first period last year.

 

Schools start way to early. Right now (7:25 am) I am at school waiting for class to start in 20 minutes.

 

I do agree that different people have different sleep cycles, but I think that it's probably based more on the individual than how old they are. I've gone through times in my life when I was up at 5 am every morning. I've gone through other times when I was up until 5 am every morning. I think it's just an individual thing. I've always been under the belief that afternoons suck, though. So it was just hunky dory for me that my high school didn't start until 8:30 am and got out at 3:15. I'm a night person and some people are morning people. But I know very few people that were actually wide awake when the first class started. Most studies show that humans operate closer to a 25-hour sleep cycle than a 24-hour sleep cycle anyway.

 

My school starts at around 8:00. This may not seem as early as some schools start, but for my area, it is much too early, because the bus routes are very long. My school has students from seven different towns, and kids in the more distant ones have to get up way too early. I live about 15 minutes from the school, but I still have to get up at 6:30, which - for me - is much too early. I can only sleep comfortably if I go to sleep late (about 10:30-12), but my parents still make me go to bed early.

And then there's another issue - homework. My school gives much, much too much. The school's handbook forbids more than 1 hour of homework in total for a student each night, and yet last year I had a single math assignment which took me, as well as 2 of the other more intelligent students in my class, a total of 3 and a half hours to complete. It's truly ridiculous. Last year I only participated in one afterschool activity once a week because I knew if I did more, I would never be able to complete my homework. Of course, the kids who did participate in sports received obvious favoritism...but...that's another issue

 

I understand the bussing concern, Terr_Mys. A lot of the reason our school started later was because there were kids that had an hour-and-a-half-long bus ride. If we had started earlier there would have been kids that would have to get on the bus at 6:30 am or earlier.

 

Yes, I know what you mean. But unfortunately, some kids here do have to get on the bus at 6:30, and some even earlier! I'm surprised that nobody has brought this up to the school board...or, maybe they have.

 

If I rode the bus, I would have to get on it at about 6:20.

 

I'm surprised that nobody has brought this up to the school board...or, maybe they have.

Someone probably has, but like most things brought up to school boards, they were ignored.

 

FYI

I live in Volusia County Florida and school for all grades began last Monday. They can't have all the grades start at the same time during the day due to the bus issue. Staggering bus traffic on the roads for people trying to get to work may also be a consideration.

High School: 7:45am till 2:30pm
Middle School: 9am till 3:30pm
Elementary: 8:00am till 2:00pm

It's also possible that the same bus that deals with high school students handles middle schoolers an hour later.

We start school so early in Florida because our standardized test, FCAT is given in March. The school board wants to get as much teaching in before the test as possible.

As a parent I'm glad high schoolers start so early. They are too tired in the evening to hang out and possibly get into trouble.

When you're a parent you'll feel the same way, trust me.

 

As a parent I'm glad high schoolers start so early. They are too tired in the evening to hang out and possibly get into trouble.


For some reason, that doesn't strike me as okay, and I imagine others here will feel the same way.

 

I don't really like that either. Waking up early never deterred me from going out and doing crazy things. I don't think there was a night I was in bed before 3 am my sophomore year. I think if I had to get up any earlier, it just would have made me sleep through my morning classes more often.

 

Doesn't school start early so there is time for extracurricular activities after?

Frankly, when I was in school I had a problem with starting so early. Yeah it was tough every so often, but it was routine. It isn't until now where I wonder how I did it. After college (class at 12pm!!) and now when I work from 9-6, the thought of having to be up every morning at 5:30 makes me nauseous.

When I was in school, I would be asleep between 9-11pm. Now I can't fall asleep before 1-2am. I guess body habits change when you get older. And then change back when you get really old. My grandmother can't stay up past 7pm.

 

I took zero hour Freshman and Sophomore year of HS. It started at 6:30 in the morning. One year I had gym at zero hour. Not fun.

 

I think the people who want to do extracurricular activites should be willing to sacrifice time after school. If school went from 8:30-3:30, then they might be there until about 5... but so? It's a choice. They shouldn't make the rest of us get up early so that they can get out of there sooner. They still have plenty of time.


-sj loves kevin spacey

 

I hated Middle school, elementary kids went at 8:15 (which is their tardy bell) Middle Schoolers went at 7:50 (which is their tardy bell) and High Schoolers, went at 9:12 (which is their tardy bell)

I hated MS because I thought it was so unfair how we went the earliest! While my HS brothers were sleeping, I was up at 6 AM to get ready for school! They woke up at 8 AM. *sighs* And by then, I was in my second period class ou to of 8.

Lucky I'm in HS now.

I agree, we are teenagers, including Middle Schoolers, it would be nice to have a hour more of sleep.

 

Here is the reason why I don't mind the starting school times.

1. I am not a morning person. I hated getting up in the morning for anything but I do anyway. It hurts and I don't officially wake up until noon anyway but I get by barely. If I can do it anyone can do it, because I don't even speak before 10 am. All you will get out of me is a series of grunts and growns.

2. Better to start this early in the morning because 90% of these students will work one day in a work force which runs from 9 to 5.

3. This is around the same time everyone in the household is going off and getting ready for work, and the timing has to do with transportation as well.

 

Yeah, my point exactly... the work force is 9-5, yet my school is 7:30-2:30. So that's NOT what I'll be doing when I'm an adult, is it?

-sj loves kevin spacey

 

No you will be doing more.

9 to 5 for most people means getting up 2 hrs prior to getting to work a 9. You have to get the kids and family up and ship them off to their destinations. Plus some people have jobs which are not down the street like your local school is, rather across town in across town traffic. You have to take all these things into account. Trust me unless you want to be working midnight shifts or something else then go right ahead but school days have always been in the morning and run to mid afternoon. I couldn't imagine school starting at 10 or 11, and staying until 5 or 6 at night.

Plus some work places need you there before 9, rather 8 or 7:30, and you will work up until 4 to 5 depending on your job.

I have to ask what else does a teenager need to be doing from 7 to 3 in the afternoon???

 

When I went to High School (weird to be talking about it in past tense...) I would usually arrive at 8:30, and classes started between 8:45-9:00, depending on how long it took to quiet the students down.

I would usually get up at 7:10, eat, get out of the shower at 7:55... and run my ass off to get to my 8:00 bus.