The New York Times
February 1, 2008
In the article, the author writes about the problem of teenagers not being able to stay awake in class. The author explains that children usually fall asleep in class because they produce melatonin, a sleep-inducing hormone, around 11 p.m. and that production peaks until about 7 a.m. The melatonin in adults peaks until around 4 a.m. This is why it is so hard to wake teenagers before 7 o’clock. The author continues to suggest a “simple” solution that some schools have already implemented which is for schools to start later. Starting school later seems like a simple and smart solution to keep teenagers awake and alert to learn. However, many school districts have abandoned this idea because parents, coaches, and school bus companies have complained. The author did a good job explaining this issue. The article included facts from researchers, and it suggested a solution. It also ended with a statement suggesting that this problem needed to be researched more in depth because it is important for children to be awake to learn. I wish my school would have started later.
Sunday, February 3, 2008
Are You Up Yet?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
4 comments:
This is a very interesting article. I did not know all of the facts about teens being tired in class; it appears very well researched and written. This issue has been brought up in my school; one of the biggest problems with starting later was that sports occur directly after school and many rely on sunlight. Due to this, my school decided not to start later.
I liked this article alot. It brought up a topic that I am sure most students feel very close to. It had a lot of credible information, and it was unbiased. I definetely think that more information should be put out on this subject because it is important for students to be up to their full learning potential.
I really enjoyed this reading article. I'm glad I finally learned the explaination as to why I never functioned my best in the morning. I thought it was just because I was a night person. Very interesting!
One school did a study on this. I watched a documentary in a psychology class in high school. The students did increase their grades on an average. The study just moved school to start at 9 instead of 8. Good thing to look into for some schools.
Post a Comment