Starting School Later Boosts Academic Performance
Getting up early for school is the bane of many teenagers' lives. However, a new study suggests that starting the school day later and letting them sleep in can improve their mood. This, in turn, can have a positive impact on their academic performance. Researchers in Brazil shifted a school's starting time by one hour to monitor students' sleep and emotional health. Overall, the students reported feeling less depressed, angry and fatigued at school. Our circadian rhythm changes significantly during adolescence and can make it hard for teens to stay awake in the morning. Before puberty, the body induces sleepiness at around 8-9pm, but when puberty begins, this rhythm shifts to 10-11pm. As the circadian rhythm naturally encourages teenagers to stay up later into the evening, it's harder for them to wake up. Therefore, changing school start times would be the best strategy to tackle adolescent sleep deprivation.
