Students in high school should start later, around 8:30 am, to have a better focus on their education and to better their safety on their way to school and during extracurricular activities.  Starting school early for students can lead to sleep deprivation, drowsiness driving to and from school, drug and alcohol abuse, and they are more likely to get injuries while participating in physical activity according to educationdegree.com.

One thing that will benefit students is decreasing sleep deprivation. Sleep deprivation is increasing in high school students. Many teens have the urge to stay up late and then sleep in the next day. Sleep deprivation causes students to not be as focused during the school day and leads them to not being able to comprehend what they are learning that day at school. This affects their overall grades in school.

Sleep deprivation also can cause students to use more drugs and alcohol to “keep themselves awake.” According to educationdegree.com studies have linked students who don’t get enough sleep to drug and alcohol abuse.

Another benefit that can be made from school starting later is being less tired while driving. Drowsiness while driving to and from school is a big concern. Studies show that student drivers get in the most accidents, even if they aren’t tired. The risk of getting in a crash or hitting an animal is higher in the dark due to the lack of visibility. Those who get more sleep throughout the night are more trusted to be behind the wheel of a vehicle.

One final benefit about school starting later is that students are less likely to get injured while participating in an extracurricular activities if they get more rest. Students are more likely to get injuries in extracurricular activities if they don’t get a good night rest.

Research from educationdegree.com has shown that kids who get 8 or more hours of sleep a night are less likely to get injured during their after school activity. If students get more sleep they won’t be as drowsy, clumsy, and have better reflexes to objects or things either around them or being thrown at them.

The problem with starting school later is that it has been a routine for  numerous years. It’s hard to break a habit and disrupting the current schedules schools have put into place. School boards would have to take time out of their busy schedule to make not just a new school schedule, but a new bus schedule for bus drivers.  If the school wants to keep their attendance up to get more federal dollars, it has been tested that if a school starts later their attendance percentage will increase.

An easy solution to this problem is to start the school day later, so students have the chance to function throughout the day without being completely drowsy. By starting the school day later sleep deprivation will decrease in percentages, less accidents to and from school, drug and alcohol abuse, and students will be less likely to get injured in their extracurricular activities.