Read these two articles and then answer the essay prompt that can be found below them.

Sleeping in is Science

The image is familiar to all of us: teens falling asleep at their desks, unable to focus on what the teacher is saying. It’s been a problem for as long as we can remember, but it doesn’t have to be a problem at all. Starting school later is better for students, teachers, and parents.

Sleep studies have shown that circadian rhythms change throughout our lives. Though adults may feel best going to bed early and rising at dawn, a teenager’s circadian rhythm is best synced to a bedtime around midnight and a waking time around 8 o’clock. Schools that ring the tardy bell at 7:15 are going against the biological needs of their students.

Even more, studies on schools that pushed back their start times have shown how the benefits play out in the classroom and beyond. A meta-analysis published by the American Academy of Pediatrics found that students with later start times had better social, cognitive, behavioral, and physical health. Another study published in the Journal of School Health found that later start times were even correlated with higher grades and lower rates of car crashes!

There is science behind the stereotype of a teen staying up late and sleeping in; their biological clock demands it. We can better fit their needs by aligning school times with their circadian rhythms — and we don’t have to wonder if this will simply work in theory. Studies already show that the benefits of letting teens get more sleep are immense.

Rise and Shine

Lack of discipline plagues American adolescents — and rather than doing everything we can to set teens up for success later in life, we feed into their problematic traits. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the laws passed by states like Florida and California pushing back school start times, despite decades of precedent. The evidence shows that we are complicating family schedules just so teens can stay up later scrolling on social media.

Many studies are cited by proponents of later school start times to show the “science” behind shifting our schedules, but this data is rooted in a misunderstanding of the problem. Yes, the CDC has found that only 30% of high school students get adequate sleep, and many studies have linked sleep deprivation to obesity, substance use, mental illness, and poor academic performance. But it is clear that the problem at its core is not the hour that school starts; the problem is how many hours of sleep students get. Students are choosing to stay up late despite knowing that they have to wake up early.

Moreover, there is ample evidence that what is taking time away from students’ sleep is pointless time-wasting on social media or the internet. In a long-term study published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, researchers stated that “cross-sectional studies have consistently shown that the frequency of social media use is associated with several sleep problems among adolescents.” They also add that “online activities (e.g., chatting) just before bedtime may cause emotional, mental, and/or physiological arousal which may, in turn, lead to more difficulty falling asleep and poorer sleep quality.”

In just a few years, teenagers will enter a world where they need to be disciplined, intentional, and independent. The workplace and obligations of everyday adult life won’t bend to their will and allow bad habits to not have consequences. The science says students need to get more sleep; we should listen by enforcing proper self-care routines and limited technology, not shift the schedule burden to parents by changing school start times.

Analyze the arguments presented in each of these two articles.

In your response, develop an argument in which you explain how one position is better supported than the other. Incorporate relevant evidence from both articles to support your argument.

Remember: the better-argued position is not necessarily the position with which you agree. This essay should take 45 minutes to complete.