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Medical research is leading American education officials to
consider having high school classes start later in the morning. The
research says teenagers are more awake later at night than adults are.
When teenagers stay up late at night they have problems learning early in
the morning.
Researchers in the state of Rhode Island measured the presence of the
hormone melatonin in peoples' mouths at different times of the day.
Melatonin causes people to feel sleepy.
They found that melatonin levels rise later at night in teenagers than
they do in children and adults. And they remain at a higher level in
teenagers later in the morning. They say this shows that teenagers have
difficulty learning early in the morning. Yet most school systems in the
United States begin high school classes at about seven o’clock.
A few school districts have made some changes. In nineteen ninety-six,
school officials in Edina, Minnesota changed high school opening from
about seven thirty until eight thirty. Two years later, the nearby city of
Minneapolis did the same. Teachers there reported that students were no
longer sleepy in class and were happier. And staying in school later in
the day did not seem to be a problem for students who had jobs after
school.
Health experts say teenagers need between eight and nine hours of sleep
a night. Students who do not get enough sleep are likely to be late for
school, fail to do their homework, fall asleep in class and have trouble
taking part in class discussions.
Yet some adults oppose changing school start times. School district
officials say it is not possible to carry high school and elementary
students on buses at the same time. And parents of young children do not
support having elementary schools start earlier in the morning. They say
it would require young children to wait for school buses in the dark.
Others do not support a later start time because they say it would
limit the time for practicing sports after school. However, the Minnesota
schools found that this did not hurt school sports competitions.
More American school districts are discussing the possibility of
changing high school start times. Researchers and teenagers say they
cannot make the change quickly enough.
This VOA Special English Education Report was written by Nancy
Steinbach. Internet users can read and listen to our reports at
voaspecialenglish.com. This is Shep O'Neal. | 
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