New Study a Wake-Up Call for Opponents of Later Start Times | Eastern North Carolina Now

    Publisher's note: The author of this post is Kristen Blair, who is a Chapel Hill-based education writer for the Carolina Journal, John Hood Publisher.

    Teen biology favors the night owl, not the early bird. This reality is prompting educators to reconsider when to ring school's first bell, even as research on the academic and health benefits of later start times stacks up. A new RAND Corp. study offers yet another upside to sleeping in: Starting school later could generate billions of dollars in future U.S. economic gains.

    ZZZ's to dollar signs? It's a powerful argument. The corollary is this: Adolescent sleep deprivation is costly. Educators should be commended for working to reverse it. Ultimately, success will hinge on close collaboration between school, community, and home.

    First, the economic implications of start times: RAND researchers looked at how school start times affect sleep, which in turn, affects achievement and other outcomes tied to students' future workforce productivity and earnings. Using a macroeconomic modeling approach, they project that delaying middle and high school start times until 8:30 a.m. nationwide could generate $83 billion over a decade.

    Such findings extend already-compelling research on start times. A large-scale study of 9,395 high school students, conducted by researcher Kyla Wahlstrom, found students in schools shifting to a later start time improved grades and attendance. Car crash rates also generally declined.

    Later start times may even help close achievement gaps. Kevin Bastian, associate director of the Education Policy Initiative at Carolina, led a study of more than 400 N.C. high schools. Published in 2016, the study examined the association between later start times and two types of outcomes, says Bastian: "classic achievement" such as End-of-Course or ACT test scores, and "engagement," including absences and disciplinary outcomes. "We actually found more positive results for traditionally disadvantaged students," Bastian says.

    Why is dashing to school in the dark bad? It's misaligned with teens' circadian rhythms, says the American Academy of Pediatrics, which supports later start times. Teens are wired to fall asleep after 11 p.m.; rising early fuels sleep deficits, which set teens up for inattention, behind-the-wheel drowsiness, and depression.

    Don't ditch the alarm yet. New federal data show only 13 percent of U.S. high schools ring the first bell at 8:30 a.m. or later. The average high school start time in North Carolina, EPIC found, is 8.

    Still, some school boards are taking action. Beginning in 2016-17, Durham Public Schools shifted start times for some elementary and all district high schools to align with students' sleep habits. High school students, who previously arrived at 7:30 a.m., now come at 9.

    Change has its challenges. In mid-September, the Durham Public Schools Board of Education reviewed results of a 2017 survey, conducted by EPIC, showing 62 percent of high school parents and 59 percent of high school personnel rated the later start time negatively for students.

    "Any change to routines can create an adjustment period," says Chip Sudderth, chief communications officer for DPS. The school district has "more work to do" to ensure the shift works for families and schools, says Sudderth. Researchers will also conduct a "deeper dive" on student performance and other outcomes.

    Adjustments are real and are felt daily. Delayed start times impact bus schedules, sports practices, and jobs. They affect parents' routines and work availability. Are schedule changes worth it? It would seem so - but local school boards should decide. Bills mandating later school starts, already introduced in various state legislatures, circumvent essential local community input and buy-in.

    Meanwhile, parents can remove chronic sleep-busters - 88 percent of teens in Walhstrom's study kept a phone in their bedrooms. Savvy teens may claim they need the phone's alarm. Guess what, kids? There's an old-fashioned substitute for that. Tick tock.