Doing a research paper on sleep opened my eyes to the danger of lack of sleep. Microsleep (mini blackouts for a few seconds), mood swings, and much worse happen due to lack of sleep. The teenage brain is hardwired to fall asleep around 11:00pm and wake up around 9:00-10:00am for a full 9-9 1/2 hours of sleep. But with school start times as early as they are, students must either lose imperative sleep and slowly build up a sleep debt, or they must attempt to defy their natural biological sleep clock and fall asleep earlier. Myriad sources agree moving school starting times to 9-9:30am would afford teenagers the few extra hours they need to reduce their sleep deficit and would be better for their natural circadian rhythm. I propose a mandatory school starting time of 9:30am at the earliest.
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