Sleepy youths have science on side

Mumbling that his first class of the day was a review that he didn’t need, my 17-year-old son refused to get out of bed. After he ignored my third request to get up, I resorted to the parent’s alarm clock of last resort —- I poured water over his head and then banged a pan with a metal spoon.

He made it to class on time.

But what happens next year, when he’s at college and my pot and spoon are here at home with me? If he’s smart, research suggests, he’ll avoid scheduling early morning classes if possible.

It’s not just a question of getting to class on time.

According to a new study, students post lower grades in early morning classes than they do in the same classes held later in the day. Co-authored by Angela K. Dills, an assistant professor of economics at Mercer University in Macon, the study reports that “early morning classes are particularly bad for students’ grades.”

In a telephone interview, Dills says she understands that some people might look at her findings with skepticism, especially those who remember that kids used to rise before the roosters on the farm.

“This isn’t to say students can’t get up at 5 a.m. and go to class,” she says. “It is just that they are not at their best at that time. They would learn more if we would allow them the opportunity to learn later.”

Dills says her findings should lead college administrators to consider fewer 8 a.m. classes and more classes that start at 4 or 5 in the afternoon. She acknowledges there would be obstacles to increased late afternoon classes, such as professors who prefer a traditional schedule.

Dills’ study aligns with other research suggesting that high school students are biologically hardwired by their circadian rhythms to stay up late and sleep late. The medical explanation is that the brain chemical melatonin, which causes sleepiness, kicks in between 11 p.m. and 8 a.m. in adolescents and teens. This sleep pattern lasts until about age 20, when it reverses, which is why so many adults report being most productive and alert in the morning.

Because many high schools start at 7:30, teens get less sleep than science says they should. In an ideal world, teens should get nine hours of sleep a night. But they average about seven hours during the school year, compared to 8.7 during the summer, according to a 2005 Northwestern University study. About a quarter of the kids get 6 1/2 hours or less sleep on school nights.

Studies have shown that high school students post lower scores on reaction tests in the morning than in the afternoon. The University of Minnesota’s research on teen sleep patterns prompted Minneapolis-area school districts to push their high school starting times to 8:30 or later.

Other districts around the country have followed suit. While the impact on academics remains unclear, later starting times have improved student attendance, reduced dropout rates and led to fewer reports of depression.

Some experts say teens are in a biological brain fog until as late as 10 a.m. or even noon. Speaking at a conference in Wales, Russell Foster, professor of circadian neuroscience at Oxford University, said, “It is cruel to impose a cultural pattern on teenagers that makes them underachieve.”

While some might question Foster’s description of early school hours as “cruel,” my son would agree with him, especially when pots and pans are involved.

(To download Dills’ study, go to papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=756847).

mdowney@ajc.com