Most school mornings, students roll over and hit snooze on their alarm clock; the repetitive blaring abruptly thrusting them back into reality. However, the 6:30 a.m. wake-up calls are a small price to pay for the dismissal bell to ring at 2:05. Last month, the Board of Education (BOE) announced that school start times will be shifted, beginning in the fall of the 2022-2023 school year, but is this what students truly want?
The discussion of later start times was brought to light years ago when the idea was implemented by other Fairfield Country districts. Scientific studies have shown that later start times increase student engagement and achievement in the classroom, a leading reason behind New Canaan Public Schools’ push for change.
In the October issue of the Courant, BOE candidates were given the chance to release statements directly to NCHS students. Two out of nine candidates made a point of endorsing later start times, both of whom thought they were appealing to students by doing so.
However, the Courant sent a survey to the student body earlier this month asking “Are you in favor of the change in school start times?” 808 of 1338 students responded, with 614, an alarming 76 percent, voting against later start times.
The fall 2022 plan will change NCHS’s start times to 8:30 to 3:00; a one-hour push-back. Sports with two-hour practices will now finish around 5:30, theatre participants will have rehearsal until 6:00, and other extracurricular activities will be pushed and crammed even later into the afternoon.
When it comes time for homework when a student finally arrives home at night, a treacherous four-hour workload can keep them up studying even later.
When students start later, they go to bed later. It may be naive to say that when students start early, they go to bed early, but at least working efficiently provides students with that option.
Students, particularly those who have been a part of NCPS for over 12 years now, know better than anyone what the daily schedule of a student demands. It’s our school, our education, and our futures that are being decided for us.
Perhaps it is the role of the BOE and NCPS administration to work to better understand students’ voices and reflect such in district changes. While the district did conduct focus groups that included students in the early stages of decision-making research, small groups cannot properly represent the entirety of the student body. It may be worth it for the district to ask students what the Courant survey prompted them and gather their own data that better reflects the opinions of students.
