Why High School Should Start Later Essay

According to health websites, a healthy person needs between seven and a half to nine hours of sleep each night. An individuals natural sleep clock tells when it is time to be awake and when it’s necessary to sleep. Many high schools have considered shifting their hours to later in the morning to prevent from disrupting student’s natural sleep clocks. High school classes should not change to begin later in the day, to accommodate teenagers natural sleep clocks, because it will interfere with their schedule they have already grown accustom to.
Many high school students have responsibilities when they get home. For example, I am home from school before my younger sister every day so she is not alone. Teenagers with younger siblings often are given the responsibility to be in charge of watching them. If the older sibling was not at home first and the younger children were not supervised an accident could occur. Not every family is able to bring their small children to a daycare after school until a parent …show more content…
A member of the school soccer team may practice with his team for two hours directly after school. If school ended two hours later than it does now his practice wouldn’t end until 6:30pm. Since the practice ends late, it would be difficult for the student to get to bed at the same time, which would result in less sleep. Another scenario of when a student would be inconvenienced by the later school hours is a junior who is expected to be at work at a specific time soon after the last class is dismissed. If she is forced to push back her start time she will work fewer hours, therefore making less of an income. In some cases, teenagers have to find jobs to help provide for their families, and if school hours change it will not allow those teens to make as much money as they need. Making the school hours later in the evening will cause problems and put more stress onto the