For Whom the School Bell Tolls - school schedules tailored to students' sleep needs

School Administrator, March, 1999 by Millicent Lawton

Third, we were worried about students who work in the afternoon. We found most employers preferred to have students begin work no earlier than 4 p.m., so they were not troubled by move of the dismissal bell from 2:10 to 3:10 p.m.

Fourth, traffic, which is a daily sore spot, became less congested around our high school in the morning because most community members had left for work by the time the large influx of high school students came to school.

The change of start times at the high school affected the other schools minimally. Middle schools open five minutes earlier at 7:45 a.m. and elementary schools start 15 minutes later at 9:15 a.m.

Our experience the last three years has shown that late start time is one of many ways schools can improve their academic environment. It is not the only way or even the most important one. However, we believe our job is to provide the best learning environment possible, and the late start time for adolescents helps us do that.

Kenneth Dragseth is superintendent, Edina Public School District 273, 5701 Normandale Road, Edina, Minn. 55424.

Additional Reading

Author Millicent Lawton suggests the following resources for more information about sleep patterns of school-age students:

* A Kappan special section, "Adolescent Sleep Needs and School Starting Times," guest edited by Kyla Wahlstrom, Phi Delta Kappan, January 1999

* "Adolescent Sleep Patterns, Circadian Timing, and Sleepiness at a Transition to Early School Days" by Mary A. Carskadon, et.al. in Sleep, Dec. 15, 1998, www.journalsleep.org

* "School Start Time Study" by Center for Applied Research and Educational Improvement, College of Education and Human Development, University of Minnesota, 275 Peik Hall, Minneapolis, Minn. 55455, 612-624-0300, carei.coled.umn.edu

* "Sleep Schedules and Daytime Functioning in Adolescents" by Amy R. Wolfson and Mary A. Carskadon in Child Development, August 1998, www.journals.uchicago.edu/CD/home.html.>

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