Homework Relevance A second grade teacher’s note to parents have caught the eyes of many and has arose a bit of speculation in Texas. In her letter home she states that there will be no homework other than unfinished classwork from that day. She then states that instead she recommends the parents should focus on eating as a family, reading together, playing outside and getting to bed early (Brandy Young). Endless studies have proven that sleep is one of the most important factors in success for the body and mental health. Other studies such as social interaction and attention from adult figures the child looks up upon have showed great benefits for children in and out of the classroom as well. Ms. Young backs herself up by saying, “research
According to a recent study by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, an estimated 83.6 million Americans are sleep deprived (Almendrala). Among these sleepy Americans are teens, the most vulnerable to sleep deprivation, primarily due to demanding school schedules. For decades, school boards and administrators have contemplated the question of whether their school should start later. On the one hand, it is said that the change would interfere with parents’ work schedules, and transportation logistics, causing stress on families. It would also interfere with students’ extracurricular activities, after school sports, student employment, and reduce the time to access public areas such as libraries. On the other hand, a change
Across America school starts on average, at eight o’clock in the morning. When walking through school hallways full of kids on a typical school morning, one may see sleep deprived and tired students not looking forward to their early morning classes, waiting for the bell to ring to signal them to go to class. Students brains are not at their full potential at eight o’clock in the morning because the brain is not yet fully awake. Starting school at eight o’clock is too early for students’ minds. David A. Sousa confirms, “Teenagers are not getting enough sleep. Sleep deprivation affects their ability to store information, increases irritability, and leads to fatigue, which can cause accidents” (Sousa 117). Starting school
To conclude, we can see how not only does more sleep make us prepared and more focused for the school day, but how it also affects our positive sleeping patterns, our ability to learn, and the amount of stress that our bodies receive. We see how many liable resources were used to conclude that sleep truly is one of the most important factors in a student's everyday life and supports the idea that school should begin later for the most positive results. Starting school later will truly minimize bad sleep patterns and habits, increase the amount of learning and lastly, put less stress on our minds and
One of the many arising problems of America’s students is they are becoming sleep deprived. The busy daily schedules of children and teens are not allowing them to get enough sleep. “Less sleep is unhealthy especially with the new research that as teenagers move through teenage years, they need increasing amounts of sleep. Nine hours per night is the necessary amount to avoid behaviors associated with sleep deprivation” (Final Report Summary, 2001). Among other things, sleep deprivation is causing students to sleep during class instead of being awake and aware. When the students are sleeping in class, they are not retaining information being taught to them. Researchers have now proven that
For five days out of every week, teenagers fall under a monotonous routine that they must follow even though it may not be preferable. The routine consisting of waking up early, trying staying awake to learn during school, and then working until the next school day with minimal sleep does not consider anything about the teenagers’ health. Not only does waking up very early in the morning damage the health and wellness of students, but it also has an impact on the grades that they receive in school. The stress and focus that students have in class is dependent on the amount of sleep they get each night. It is also unjust to force parents to have to wake up before normal work hours to bring their children to school. More time in the morning allows students to get the sleep they need while staying on track with the work schedule of adults. Schools in the United
Homework was a necessity because it was the only way the students were prepared for class the following day. By the 20th Century the PTA began to push their opinion in the battle of homework. They sought to have it irradiated as it was a distraction from the students learning process (Gill & Schlossman, 2004 pg. 175). There were pediatricians going as far to say that homework was the reason for the rise in health issues and the death toll. At this time educators, doctors, and scientists were all in agreeance that is was essential to educate the “whole child”. Thus, allowing time for distractions, play, and a life outside of school that was enriched. This would develop the child’s well-being in every aspect of life (Gill & Schlossman, 2004 pg. 176). During the Cold War, the issue of homework became a cause for concern. The Russians had achieved more than the American children. This began the achievement for excellence. As the curriculum in school changed homework was reinstated because the students needed to learn outside of school in order to prosper in academics (Gill & Schlossman, 2004
Locker, Melissa. "Let Your Kids Sleep More for Better Grades." Time. Time, n.d. Web. 09 Mar.
"Should I finish my homework or go to sleep" is a question students are challenged with on a daily basis. A teenager who doesn’t get enough sleep often are sluggish and unproductive throughout the day. In order for the school to be beneficial for the students, school should start later in the mornings; however, other people disagree and say if we start later it would cause the students to end later.
“Last year the foundation reported that nearly 60% of 7- to 12-year-olds said they felt tired during the day, and 15% said they had nodded off at school”(Park). Every teacher wants the students to have good grades even if they try their best to teach students who are sleeping can’t learn from the teacher. Sometimes grades goes down and it’s not the teacher’s fault. People would be able to pay more attention in class. Some people at school are very moody and because of that some people won’t pay attention to class and their grades will drop. I sometimes get really tired and can barely pay attention to the class. Some people think they can just get enough sleep during the weekend but that is wrong. “Sleep researchers have learned that when you regularly fail to get enough sleep, it takes more than just a few hours on Saturday and Sunday mornings for your body to recover”(Park). Some people can’t focus in school because of the schedule. Most times people just get their sleep in class and not focus on the school work or
Forcing teens to wake at early hours of the day often causes them to get less than the recommended nine hours of sleep developing brains need, leading to the developmental issues. While at higher risk for issues like anxiety and depression means a higher risk for the psychological issues that that can get in the way of students learning, thus being a detriment to how the student performs in the classroom. While anxiety can often cause students to be too overwhelmed to do well in classes, if do anything at all. Depression can cause students to not put as much effort into school as they could, if any effort is being put in at all. Both of these damaging effects to teens developing brains negatively affects the student’s performance of how well they are doing in
Another reason that high schools should start later is that it can cause them to injure or hurt themselves by mistake because they are too sleepy. It’s very hard to focus on anything when you’re sleepy so imagine trying to get to school when you’re so drowsy and tired from a poor night of rest. A survey was taken of over 1,600 parents and adolescents about their sleeping habits and how it affects them and the results were
Almost every day high school students are waking up around six o’clock in the morning to get ready for school, some even earlier than that. Nearly every morning students are waking up without adequate sleep. If sleep is one of the most essential needs of the body in order to grow and develop, shouldn’t we be more aware of how much it affects students everyday performance? The ways in which students are affected by sleep-deprivation is precisely why school needs to start later.
Long before the sun rises or the moon sets, the morning rituals of high school students across the United States are well underway. Long before the streetlights have turned off, students are walking and driving along the roads to reach their education centers. Long before the bell for second block has rung, many of these same students find themselves dozing off in class. Why are they unable to focus? Are they aware that falling asleep in class is rude? How are so many students this tired? These are all valid questions that teachers and parents alike often ponder to themselves. The answer to these questions, however, lies with one simple word: sleep. It has become
Schools act as if starting earlier would be better for students, and teachers. However, students are having to adjust to starting their school years earlier by setting alarms back, or by having their parents force them out of bed with the idea that this is good for them, and it will be how the rest of their life will work. The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute followed up on the idea by recommending teenagers receive nine to ten hours of sleep per night. Six studies, two of which were controlled, were held to further back up this information. They found found that delaying the start of school from 25 to 60 minutes increased sleep time for students 25 to 72 minutes. It was also found that students in the study went to bed at their normal bedtime, and got more sleep in the long run. A parent wrote to Carroll in response saying, “You ask if it is too long or too short, and I say both - too long for teachers who are already putting in a full day, too long for students who are burned out by the end of the school day, too long for mandated children that have to bide their time before their after school programs start, and too short to be any real use,” (Carroll).
One might take up the popular vote that dedication to school can lead to excessive hours of study and a lack of sleep. Per a study by Eaton, Ph.D. et al., about 68.9% of questioned high school students got an insufficient (less than 7 hours) of sleep per night, of which about 6% claimed to have gotten less than 4 hours of sleep (2). However, I argue back that the diligence the students should not lead to excessive, long nights, but rather to good study habits and time management. This will prevent late nights of strenuous work, as the work would have been divided among several days or weeks to spread out the workload. Some might then argue back that sometimes the students do not have control over their workload and spontaneous assignments that interrupt their schedule; sometimes it is the teacher’s spontaneous and strenuous assignments that cause the students to stay up so late working on projects. However, to counteract that statement, I claim that problems like these should not be occurring in a supportive public school system. The teachers should be supportive of the children for whom they are providing a public education for. Others might also argue against spreading ideas in class, especially with ideas of religion,