Starting lessons in the morning half an hour late significantly improves adolescents’ ability to concentrate and feel good, and is beneficial for their health, according to a study in the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine.
Such conclusions were reached by scientists from Hasbro Children’s Hospital in Providence (Rohde Island state), who examined 201 students from four classes (in the USA they are grades 9 to 12 – PAP) of high school.
For the purposes of the study, the starting time of lessons was moved from 8.00 to 8.30. Before and after this change, students completed an online survey on nighttime sleep habits.
It turned out that a slight delay in starting lessons improved the vitality of students – fewer of them were sleepy or tired during the day. The youth also admitted that they were more motivated to participate in various activities and activities.
In addition, the percentage of adolescents feeling unhappy or depressed decreased by a fifth, as did the percentage of teenagers who felt anxious or irritable.
Shifting lessons a little later also contributed to an increase in night sleep on school days – by an average of 45 minutes – and to a reduction in the phenomenon of weekend falling asleep. The percentage of students sleeping less than 7 hours a night fell by 79,4%, while the percentage of young people sleeping for at least 8 hours a day increased by 38,3%.
A small change in the school schedule also affected the health of children – the number of students visiting medical centers due to fatigue dropped more than threefold, and school attendance improved.
In the end, despite the teachers and sports coaches initially resisting the delay of half an hour, and the school administration planned to restore the previous timetable after the end of the study, both the students and the teaching staff voted to stay at 8.30 in the spring semester.
According to Judith A. Owens, the researcher who leads the study, the observed beneficial effect of starting lessons later can be explained by the fact that in early adolescence, adolescents experience a two-hour delay in the cycle of falling asleep and waking up, compared to earlier childhood. At the same time, the need for night sleep does not decrease significantly, and the optimal number of hours that adolescent young people should sleep is approx. 9 hours, the researcher explains.
In the editorial to Dr.Kyl Wahlstrom of the University of Minnesota in St. Paul recalls, in turn, that Owens’ work confirms the results of many previous studies showing that starting lessons at a slightly later time is good for teenagers. According to the expert, this evidence should serve as the basis for changes in the timetable for secondary school students. (PAP)