Sociology Prof. Suggests No Early Start Time For Any School
Sociology Prof. Suggests No Early Start Time For Any School
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David Slone-dslone@timesuniononline.com
Sociology Prof. Suggests No Early Start Time For Any SchoolTwo months after the Warsaw School Board heard a presentation from Dr. Caitlin Ryser about a later start time for the middle and high schools, a doctor of sociology told the board he didn’t want to see the elementary schools start sooner.
He didn’t want to see any students start the school day before 8 a.m.
Dr. Judson Everitt said he and his wife, Jill, have three kids, who either are in or will be in Warsaw Community Schools. Everitt is a professor of sociology at Loyola University Chicago.
“I’m here tonight because it’s my understanding that the board is considering a reversal of sorts of the current start time for our schools. So secondary schools would start at or around 8:30 a.m., and the elementary schools would start around 7:40 a.m. I want to be very, very clear upfront: I completely support later start time for the high schools. My concern lies with the significantly earlier start times for the elementary schools,” he said.
Scientific research says “we cannot, with any degree of certainty, or even much confidence, conclude that start times this early for our elementary schools would have no negative effects for our elementary students,” he said.
He cited a recently published study in the scientific journal Sleep Medicine that shows “evidence that changes in sleep patterns previously thought to be associated with puberty actually occur among younger children as well, at elementary school ages, delaying and shortening their sleep more than previously thought. If elementary students and adolescents are not as different as we thought concerning sleep, then earlier start times likely have negative consequences. for younger kids just as we know they do for adolescents.”
Another pair of recent studies both including over 700 elementary students in their analysis found that earlier start times for elementary schools are associated with poor performance on standardized tests, more student absences, more negative behavior incidents and increased disciplinary actions, Everitt said.
Research also shows that insufficient or poor quality sleep has negative effects on children of all ages, he said.
“Flipping the current schedule does not solve the problems created by early start times, it simply shifts the burden of these problems from our high school students to our elementary students,” Everitt said. “I urge the board to work to create a schedule that doesn’t require any student in the district to start school before 8 a.m.”
Everitt said last week he spoke with Dr. Joseph Buckhalt, a psychologist at Auburn University, who is a leading expert in the country in developmental psychology and sleep research. Buckhalt offered to communicate directly with the school board about the prospect of a policy change and offer whatever insights he could provide. Everitt said he would be happy to facilitate communication between Buckhalt and the school board.
Board member Elle Turley told him that she appreciated the research he shared and it was being taken very seriously. “It’s not an easy decision and I appreciate the time you’ve taken to share your side and the information you have,” she said.
Heather Reichenbach, board president, told Everitt that the board and Superintendent Dr. David Hoffert “are looking at all options in evaluating this important topic.”
