A California lawmaker has proposed a bill that would ., aligning their schedules with recommendations by scientists who say teens don鈥檛 get enough sleep.
California school boards currently set their own start times without such restrictions. If the bill passed, schools would be required to adjust their schedules by 2020 unless they are rural schools that qualify for a waiver from the rule. The state鈥檚 senate has passed the bill, and its assembly is expected to consider it when the legislature reconvenes.
The unusual proposal comes after waves of recommendations in recent years from groups like the American Academy of Pediatrics, which wrote in a 2014 position paper that to better sync with students鈥� changing sleep cycles. It鈥檚 not that teens stay up late and sleep in because they lack self control, the group said. Rather, pediatricians say adolescents鈥� body clocks are naturally programmed to wake up later than their younger peers.
鈥淪tudies show that adolescents who don鈥檛 get enough sleep often suffer physical and mental-health problems, an increased risk of automobile accidents, and a decline in academic performance,鈥� the organization said in a position paper. 鈥淏ut getting enough sleep each night can be hard for teens whose natural sleep cycles make it difficult for them to fall asleep before 11 p.m.鈥攁nd who face a first-period class at 7:30 a.m. or earlier the next day.鈥�
But most districts don鈥檛 heed that recommendation. Nationwide, five out of every six U.S. middle and high schools , the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported in 2015.
As 91制片厂视频 Week reported that year, an international group of sleep researchers pushed even harder, when they said and no earlier than 11 a.m. for 18-year-olds. 鈥淭he researchers鈥攆rom Oxford University, Harvard University, and the University of Nevada鈥攁cknowledged schools were not likely to follow their guidance, in part because of logistical concerns, and because schools still don鈥檛 recognize the importance of changing biological rhythms in the teen years,鈥� I wrote. From that story:
鈥淏ut even administrators who are committed to changing bell schedules say it is one of the decisions that sparks the most concerns, comments, and even resistance from parents and members of the public. That鈥檚 because many school districts use school buses in shifts, taking several waves of students to different schools throughout the morning. Changing start times for secondary schools typically forces districts to either expand their transportation budgets to buy or lease more buses, or to also shift start times for elementary schools to make the schedules work.鈥�
If California passes the proposed bill, it might lead to districts to shift start times for elementary schools, too, to make it all work logistically. An analysis of the bill also cites potential effects for parents, single-parent families, transportation, and extracurricular activities.
And there are sure to be groups that oppose such a measure in favor of leaving such decisions in the hands of local school boards. The bill is opposed by the California School Boards Association and the California Teachers Association.