The Negative Effects Of Early High School

1979 Words4 Pages

"A third of our life we spend sleeping. This period, when the body is at rest and sensory input is more or less inactive, is in fact a time of intense activity for the brain" (Sleep and It 's Secrets). Many high schools start at 7:30 am, which means that to get the recommended eight to nine hours of sleep, high schoolers would have to be asleep by 9:00 pm. With sports practices, club meetings, music lessons and practice, homework, and studying, a bedtime that early is unheard of for these teens. Sleep is a crucial aspect of development and functioning, but with school start times this early, teenagers aren 't getting enough. Biologically, they are not wired to go to bed early and start school so early. This means, academically, they are …show more content…

Both are related to a lack of attention, tardiness, and absence. At best, the students are unable to grasp and retain the information the homework tries to teach because they lose focus and do it quickly, as a task in and of itself. Often, they are either copying homework, choosing not to do the homework, or deciding not to study at all, in hopes of getting every single minute of sleep. High school is a prime time for educational growth, with fast paced learning, Advance Placement classes, research projects, and multiple tests a week. However, due to the students lack of sleep, students aren 't able to truly absorb the presented material. They don 't reflect on research they are given or expand on the topics that interest them. Attempts to improve or increase their ability to attend or focus can result in unhealthy and unsafe practices of consuming large amounts of caffeine (coffees and high energy drinks) or taking others ' prescription stimulants (Ritalin and Xanax). Decreased learning and poor retention are also a result of tardiness and absences. "One Carnegie Mellon University study found that sleeping less than seven hours a night associated with a tripled risk of coming down with a cold" (Schocker). This increased illness hinders school attendance, as does the inability to wake up on time. Students, who are home sick, who are …show more content…

Studies have found a link between a lack of sleep and heightened risk of disease, forming later in life. Discovery News author, Emily Sohn, said that "chronic sleep deprivation can cause obesity... and other ills" (Sohn). Along with that, dementia, hypertension, and strokes can also be a result of an insufficient amount of sleep

Open Document