UPDATE Dec. 21:
Jack Dale announced on Thursday that there will be no change to the start times for the 2013-2014 school year. The school board members have not wanted to make the changes, and even if they did it is too late to announce a later start time, according to a qualified source. A firm will be hired to study the issue of changing the start time, but the hiring process is still in the early stages, and no one has been chosen.
ORIGINAL POST Nov. 30:
By the time the sun comes up, most Langley students have gotten dressed, eaten breakfast and headed out the door. However, that could soon change, because the Fairfax County School Board is planning to move all high school start times to 8 a.m. or later. Last April the School Board declared its goal to shift high school opening times so that students can get more sleep.
“The school board is in the process of hiring a consultant to help FCPS reach this goal,” said Phyllis Payne, a co-founder of the SLEEP (Start Later for Excellence in Education Proposal) organization that has been pushing for later start times since 2004.
FCPS hopes to “minimize cost and limit impact to sports and activities,” according to the resolution. This isn’t the first time FCPS has considered switching high school start times. In 2008, a county task force created a plan that had Langley starting at 8:55 and ending at 3:45, but it was rejected.
Supporters of Sleep
Research shows countless reasons why getting sleep is beneficial to students. According to the Virginia Academy of Sleep Medicine, teenagers need about nine hours of sleep per night. Shifts in teenage brains “make it hard for teens to fall asleep before 11 pm,” meaning high schoolers would need to sleep until 8 am.
Meanwhile a lack of sleep leads to anger, impulsivity and loss of motivation. “Later morning start times have decreased depression and the need for medication among students,” said Payne. A National Sleep Foundation poll found that 15 percent of sophomores, juniors and seniors drive drowsy at least once a week, and that more than 25 percent of high school students surveyed fall asleep in class.
Many students agree that more sleep would be a definite advantage. “Think about it, why is Langley’s status going down? Why are kids’ grades going down? Because we are all sleeping in class,” said junior Sid Chawla. “Kids like us have to wake up at ungodly hours, and a lot of us are taking 5 Hour Energy shots.”
Freshman Jonathan Canfield agreed. “Having to wake up at 5 a.m. is not preferable to me,” he said.
The Downside of Sleep
Just as there are benefits to opening high schools later, there are also many disadvantages. Students would get home much later, leaving less time for homework, sports and extracurriculars. “I actually would not want a late start because I want to get home early to finish all of my work,” said freshman Ananya Hegde
Junior Pallavi Prayaga added, “People who have sports would have to do all their homework at 9 pm.”
Langley principal Matt Ragone stated that there would be a huge drop off in academics as a result of later start times. “There would be stress and confusion on how to balance everything,” he said.
FCPS Superintendent Jack Dale had a similar viewpoint. “While there is research suggesting students would be better served to have later start times, students in general have not been in favor of doing so.”
Mr. Ragone claimed that even if school were to start later, teachers would still arrive at the earlier times to avoid traffic. “Right now, school starts at the only time that we can make it,” he said. A survey of all Langley faculty showed that 74 percent were opposed to later start times (results provided by Mr. Ragone).
What’s Next?
The next step is for the FCPS School Board to hire a consulting firm and research other school systems that start later. FCPS will then create a “blueprint for change” that will outline modifications as well as the cost for everything.
“The transportation system is a tool that can be used in almost any way. It can adapt to anything, as long as the school system is willing to pay for it,” said FCPS Director of Transportation Linda Farbry.
“School Board members are set on making it happen,” said Mr. Ragone. However, according to Dr. Dale, the changes will “certainly not take place by next year.”
“It’d take a tremendous amount of planning and rearranging,” added senior School Board student representative Lucy Gunter.
School Board member Sandy Evans noted that public engagement will play a key role in the planning. “My personal hope would be to see this [change] accomplished by fall 2014,” she said.
Additional reporting by Sara Guglielmo