11-12-2022 3:26pm

Westwood School Committee Changes 2023-24 School Start Times, Gives Sleep Deprived High Schoolers Extra Time in Morning

Darlene Cancell Editor

Image by Monstera from Pexels.

On Wednesday, November 9, 2022, at Westwood High School’s Little Theater, Westwood School Committee unanimously voted to change school start times in Westwood Public Schools for the 2023-24 school year, by adopting “Scenario B.”

The changed schedule gives high school students almost an extra hour in the morning before school compared to the current schedule. It makes minor adjustments to start times for middle school and elementary school students. As a result of Scenario B’s approval, there may also be a minor adjustment to the start time of Westwood Integrated Preschool.

Current Westwood Public Schools Schedule, 2022-23 Academic Year

Currently, within Westwood Public Schools, here's what school in session looks like:

High School - 7:25 a.m. to 2:05 p.m.

Middle School - 7:48 a.m. to 2:25 p.m.

Elementary Schools - 8:50 a.m. to 3:10 p.m.

Westwood Integrated Preschool - 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. and 9:00 a.m. to 2:45 p.m.

Future Westwood Public Schools Schedule, 2023-24 Academic Year

Scenario B, which School Committee has approved, puts Westwood Public Schools on the following, new schedule:

High School - 8:15 a.m. to 2:55 p.m.

Middle School - 7:45 a.m. to 2:22

Elementary schools - 9:00 a.m. to 3:20 p.m.

Scenario B represents only a three minute earlier start time for middle schoolers and a ten minute later start time for elementary school students compared to their current schedule. However, it represents a 50 minute later difference for high schoolers, compared to their current schedule. For students excluding high schoolers, Scenario B represents little change from the status quo.

The Integrated Preschool’s schedule was not specifically included in Scenario B. Westwood Public Schools Superintendent Emily Parks noted that the impact of implementing Scenario B on the Integrated Preschool’s schedule would likely be minimal. It might have a changed start time next year of about 5 to 10 minutes earlier than what it is now. Such a change is intended to ensure that the preschool’s release time does not occur at the same time as the high school’s.

Considerations Leading Up to Changed School Schedule

Before taking the vote, the committee held a brief discussion to review a survey of parent preference among three possible start time scenarios being considered - Scenarios B, C, and C-2.

Anthony Mullin, chair of the Subcommittee on School Start Times, summarized the feedback from what he counted as 65 or 66 comments received. Mr. Mullin noted that 36 respondents supported Scenario B and 11 respondents favored Scenario C or C-2. Nine respondents supported the changes in general. Five respondents preferred no change. The rest could not be categorized, he said. Concerns that parents raised were largely related to the impacts of changes to childcare, he said.

Superintendent Parks noted that the responses from the latest parent survey were “remarkably consistent” with earlier feedback from other forums.

School Committee Chair Charles Donahue recalled that it was about three years ago that Mr. Mullin first raised the issue of changing school start times. Mr. Donahue characterized the result of School Committee’s vote last Wednesday to be a “wonderful example” of taking an idea from conception to fruition.

“I’m thrilled by the School Committee’s unanimous decision to move Westwood High School’s start time to 8:15 a.m. from its current 7:25 a.m. start. Research has indicated that this change will improve the physical, social-emotional and mental wellbeing of our Westwood students," Mr. Mullin commented to Westwood Minute. He also expressed his appreciation for both the "tireless work" put in by subcommittee members and the input received from the community.

In earlier discussions leading up to School Committee’s vote, Mr. Mullin had described research regarding adolescent sleep, noting that teenagers typically get seven of the recommended nine hours of sleep. Around the age of 13, adolescents experience a change in circadian rhythm which puts their bodies on a later clock. Moving school start times to a time at 8:30 a.m. or later for this age group could be beneficial in countering the effects of sleep deprivation, improve their physical and mental health, and improve students’ academic performance, he said.

A 2014 study by the American Academy of Pediatrics found that the average adolescent is “chronically sleep deprived and pathologically sleepy.” Additionally, when adolescents do not get enough sleep, they are at risk of becoming overweight, depressive, engaging in unhealthy behaviors, and performing poorly in school.