It is no secret that sleep is vital to the development of a student’s brain. The more sleep a student gets, the more efficient the still-developing brain is.
Dr. Walker, professor of neuroscience and psychology at the University of California, Berkeley says sleep is critical in developing the part of the brain that makes decisions, so the more sleep students get, the better decisions they will make.
Dr. Walker also states that the sleep contributing to brain development occurs during the end of a sleep cycle. It logically follows that the early start time of high schools cuts off that crucial sleep from happening.
Studies found in Is School Slowly Destroying Your Brain? show that sleep deprivation in high school students can lead to a higher risk of bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder, and even schizophrenia.
Unfortunately, it’s hard to solve the issue of high schoolers getting more sleep because teenagers’ circadian rhythms shift later than adults.
A circadian rhythm is the internal clock in a person’s body that determines if they are tired or awake. This is why a teenager can’t just “go to bed earlier”; they aren’t tired until later in the night and aren’t fully awake until later in the day.
Schools that have implemented a later start time have seen improved class attendance, decreased psychological problems, decreased drug and alcohol abuse, and higher grades across the board.
