Earlier school start times as a risk factor for poor school performance: An examination of public elementary schools in the commonwealth of Kentucky.

Abstract

Adequate sleep is essential for child learning. However, school systems may inadvertently be promoting sleep deprivation through early school start times. The current study examines the potential implications of early school start times for standardized test scores in public elementary schools in Kentucky. Associations between early school start time and poorer school performance were observed primarily for schools serving few students who qualify for free or reduced-cost lunches. Associations were controlled for teacher-student ratio, racial composition, and whether the school was in the Appalachian region. Findings support the growing body of research showing that early school start times may influence student learning but offer some of the first evidence that this influence may occur for elementary school children and depend on school characteristics.

Sleep in New Zealand children aged 7–9: associations with ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and achievement in reading and mathematics

“…Also, the New Zealand primary school start time of 9 AM is later than is seen in many elementary schools in the United States. 27 The 9 AM school start time for students in the current study meant that those with a later bedtime and wake time were not further disadvantaged. However, the opportunity for a later rise time because of a later school start time is not an advantage to students if their rise time is set earlier to facilitate an early work start time for their parents.…”

Sleep, social behaviour and food consumption of schoolchildren of a large Brazilian city

“…The reduced sleep duration identified in the present study was also found in other investigations concerning schoolchildren (1,3) . The fact that the duration is smaller on weekdays (versus during the weekend) reflects an increase in social obligations, academic demands and exposure to technology (such as TV, video games, computers and social networks), and the specifics of class days and this phase of life (43) . In the study Pasch et al (44) , short sleep duration during the week was more predictive of risks, such as fatigue, daytime sleepiness, depression and aggressiveness, when compared to the weekend, suggesting that the increase in sleep hours during the weekend is not sufficient to protect schoolchildren from the outcome behaviours resulting from the accumulated loss of weekly sleep.…”

Longitudinal Outcomes of Start Time Delay on Sleep, Behavior, and Achievement in High School

“…For instance, economically disadvantaged students or students at the lower end of the performance spectrum may be particularly likely to benefit from increases in total sleep time that might result from later school schedules. 21,28 Student outcomes may also vary with circadian preference: individuals who describe themselves as larks (prefer mornings as the time of greatest productivity and well-being) generally have more positive outcomes than do owls (those who report an evening preference) in a number of domains, including lower rates of depression, better grades in college, and better physical health.…”