Experts: Students should sleep more, lessons should start later

Schools should consider applying more flexible schedules, allowing students to start lessons later in the morning. This is the recommendation of a group of Swiss researchers, who argue that adolescents have a biological rhythm that pushes them to fall asleep and wake up later compared to adults.

According to them, many young people fail to meet their daily sleep needs due to the early start of school, which has consequences for both well-being and the learning process.

“This is concerning, as chronic sleep deprivation not only affects well-being, but also has measurable consequences on mental health, physical development and the ability to learn,” said Oscar Jenni from the University of Zurich, part of the team that published the study in the scientific journal Journal of Adolescent Health.

The study analyzed the effects of a flexible model implemented three years ago in a high school in the canton of St. Gallen. Until then, classes at this institution began at 7:20 a.m.

With the schedule change, students were offered two alternatives: attend optional classes starting at 7:30 a.m. or begin regular lessons at 8:30 a.m.

Researchers compared academic results and data on students’ sleep habits before and after the new system was implemented. According to the findings, 95% of students chose to go to school later, gaining up to 40 minutes of additional sleep each morning.

Bedtime remained almost the same, which led to an increase in total nightly sleep duration.

After the flexible schedule was introduced, improvements in results were observed, particularly in mathematics and English. Students also reported fewer sleep-related problems and an increase in health-related quality of life, emphasized the study’s lead researcher, Joëlle Albrecht.

According to the research team, flexibility in school schedules can positively affect not only academic performance but also the ability to cope with the growing mental health challenges among young people.

“KORÇA BOOM”