FAQ's from Faculty & Parent Mtgs. - Sept. 2018 to October 2018
The following
questions were asked at Teacher Forums at each school building in September and
early October.
Impact on
Students
1. Will MS/HS students actually get more sleep?
The consensus
from the scientific studies is clear: when school districts move secondary
schools’ start times later, students get more sleep because they fall asleep
more promptly and sleep more deeply as their schedules mirror their Circadian
Rhythms.
2. What is the research on elementary start time?
The biological
research shows that an elementary child’s natural “clock” causes the release of
melatonin (hormone that induces drowsiness) upon nightfall. However, that
biological “clock” gets pushed back by a couple of hours during adolescence,
delaying the secretion of melatonin a couple of hours, making it harder for
adolescents to fall asleep until much later. Because of these biological
realities, it makes sense to have elementary students start earlier in order to
mirror their biological clocks that encourage them to wake at daybreak and have
middle and high school students wake and start school later.
In terms of
studies of the impact on elementary students of the implementation of earlier
start times, the data is less robust than data for secondary level students.
However, there is promising data. For example, a 1998 study in Minneapolis
found positive performance and behavioral responses among students when certain
Minneapolis elementary schools went from 8:40 a.m. to 7:40 a.m. A 2015 study,
furthermore, found an increase of sleep among 3rd grade elementary students
when elementary schools shifted from 8:20 to 7:45 a.m. while seeing a decrease
in sleep of between four and nine minutes among fourth and fifth grade
students.
3. Have you ever surveyed elementary parents
about what time children currently wake up?
In the spring of
2017, elementary parents were surveyed. (Please keep in mind that this data is
when parents are aware that their children are awake and, thus, could be later
than the elementary students actually wake up.) The surveys found that 25%
currently wake up at 6:30 a.m. or earlier. Forty percent wake up between 6:30
and 7:00 a.m. and thirty-five percent wake up after 7:00 a.m.
4. Why change? We’re a high performing district.
Kids are on social media late at night. Elementary kids are arriving without
breakfast and eat here.
In August of
2014, the American Academy of Pediatrics made the following statement:
“Studies
show that adolescents who don’t get enough sleep often suffer physical and
mental health problems, an increased risk of automobile accidents and a decline
in academic performance.
But
getting enough sleep each night can be hard for teens whose natural sleep
cycles make it difficult for them to fall asleep before 11 p.m. – and who face
a first-period class at 7:30 a.m. or earlier the next day.
In
a new policy statement published online Aug. 25, the American Academy of
Pediatrics (AAP) recommends middle and high schools delay the start of class to
8:30 a.m. or later. Doing so will align school schedules to the biological
sleep rhythms of adolescents, whose sleep-wake cycles begin to shift up to two
hours later at the start of puberty.”
We also believe
that elementary students will benefit from a start time that mirrors their own
biological clocks and enables them to start and end their days earlier.
5. Are we trading one problem for another?
We are confident
that we are not trading one problem for another.
The biological
research shows that a child’s body natural “clock” causes the release of
melatonin (the hormone that induces drowsiness) upon nightfall. While that
changes during adolescence, an elementary child’s “clock” also predicts that an
early start for their school day (subsequent to waking up at early light) is
more natural.
In terms of
studies of the implementation of later start times, the data regarding the
impact on elementary students is less robust than data for secondary level
students. However, there is promising data. For example, a 1998 study in
Minneapolis found positive performance and behavioral responses among students
when certain Minneapolis elementary schools went from 8:40 a.m. to 7:40 a.m. A
2015 study, furthermore, found an increase of sleep among 3rd grade elementary
students when elementary schools shifted from 8:20 to 7:45 a.m. while seeing a
decrease in sleep of only four and nine minutes among fourth and fifth grade
students.
6. Can we push high school to 8:45 a.m. so
elementary can start at 8:00 a.m?
School Committee
has made a decision to choose between two possible end times, 3:00 or 3:05 p.m.
This change will impact sports, causing us to delay or change between 100 and
150 contests. Moving high school dismissal to 3:15 p.m. (necessary with an 8:45
am start time) would have changed that to about 250-300 contests and would have
caused us to cancel a variety of sporting events.
7. What is the reason for the 15-minute drop off
window for students?
The drop-off time
ensures that all students arrive in their rooms on time, given crowded drop-off
logistics at elementary schools. It also ensures that students do not get
rushed into their classrooms.
8. Anxiety is on the rise in elementary school
kids. Will this change increase it? Can we put supports in?
We believe that
elementary students will benefit from a start time that mirrors their own
biological clocks and enables them to start and end their days earlier. At the
same time, we will be watching closely any challenges that arise and will work
to address them.
9.What if it is impossible for me to get my child to school on time with the new schedule? What happens if a student is chronically late? What supports will we put in place for behavioral issues that result from sleep deprivation?
We expect students to be at school on time, as it is disruptive to a student's learning for them to miss class time. We are not expecting significant additional behavioral issues, but we will ensure that all children with behavioral needs are properly supported. We also intend to provide sleep education throughout the district to help parents with information and strategies to ensure their students are getting adequate sleep.
Impact on
Teachers
10. How would k-12 department meetings happen in
scenario 1?
While a draft of
a plan has been developed, further discussions with department leaders will
take place after the School Committee vote. One approach the District could
implement is that the District would provide release time for teachers (perhaps
2-hour sessions on four different days throughout the school year) in selected
K-12 departments.
11. When would faculty meetings take place?
We expect that
principals and their buildings will plan them in the way that works best for
their buildings following a similar process as they do now.
12. Can we individualize departure times?
Principals may
authorize flexibility. The Central Office wants to be careful not to promise a
certain amount of flexibility. Customizing schedules can become problematic
very quickly when organizing meetings and ensuring that students are properly
supervised. This would have to be done carefully at the principal’s discretion.
13. How will staff deal with morning child care
not starting before 7:00 a.m?
We know that this
is a challenge for a number of staff. We are happy to connect high school staff
(who deal with this challenge now) with elementary staff.
14. What is cost for full day teacher
professional development?
It would cost
$135,000 in per diem salary to have WTA members work for one day when students
were not present.
15. How will this affect teacher retention?
We know that
there is concern among teachers that they will not be able to address their own
personal needs regarding child care and other personal responsibilities after a
change in start time. We will do everything we can to help teachers address
those issues. In Districts throughout the country that have made changes like
the ones Wayland is considering, research has shown minimal teacher retention issues.
BASE and Child
Care
16. How might BASE adjust to increased need?
We are working
with School Committee to use BASE revenue to make targeted pay increases, and
to market our BASE jobs as vigorously as possible throughout the region in
order to acquire the necessary staff for an increase in demand. We will work with families to connect them with possible child care solutions.
17. What is the flexibility of Longfellow daycare
on arrival times?
Longfellow has
expressed a willingness to add earlier times based on demand. However, they do
not foresee having flexibility that would allow parents to choose to enroll
children in only a part of the after-school program.
18. Can we use BASE revenue for more buses?
By law, BASE
revenues cannot be used for school expenses. BASE and the School Department
have two separate budgets.
Impact on Boston
Students
19. When will the decision be made about
allocating an additional morning bus for Boston students?
The above
mentioned “decision” refers to a proposed allocation of an additional morning
elementary bus for Boston-resident students. That additional bus would cut in
half the number of Boston stops for elementary students, reducing travel time
approximately fifteen minutes. That would result in a pick-up at the first stop
of 6:50 a.m. as opposed to the current projection of 6:35 a.m. The cost of the
second morning bus would be $32,000. This allocation will be reviewed and
possibly approved as part of the School Committee recommended budget in late
January 2019, and ultimately by the town in early May 2019 at Town Meeting.
20. Can we have an after-school bus for Boston
residents?
We have an
after-school bus every day at the high school, 4 days a week at the middle
school, and 3 days a week at elementary. We could increase these late buses if
necessary.
21. Is it too early for Boston-resident students?
It is possible
for Boston students on the earliest buses to get enough sleep. The first bus
pick-up is 6:35 a.m. According to reports from Boston families, the average
Boston student on the earliest bus has to get up at 5:30 to make this bus on
time. In order to get 9.5 hours of sleep elementary, Boston elementary students
will have to go to bed at approximately 8:00 p.m.
Extra Help,
Extracurriculars and Sports
22. How will WHS students get extra help after
school?
The Wayland
Public Schools believes that, in addition to student health, academic growth is
our highest priority. As a result, we expect coaches and teachers to work
together to ensure that athletes can join practices later when necessary due to
after-school help.
23. Will there be a change in time for athletics
for elementary school activities after school?
The District will
be working with the Recreation Department to minimize the delays in their
programs which traditionally start at about 6:00 p.m. There will probably be some
delay, but we hope that will be mitigated by the new fields projects. The
District will work with its coaches to examine its teams’ practice lengths as
well.
24. How will fine arts programing at night and
during the afternoon be affected? Will there be a gap between afternoon and
night?
The Central
Office and the Performing Arts Department will have meetings beginning in early
December to address the challenge of scheduling performing arts rehearsals and
performances. There will likely be a smaller gap between afternoon and evening
rehearsals because of the later dismissal time. Rehearsals may also need to be
somewhat shorter to ensure that students who participate in arts programs or
sports right after school and perform also at night have a chance to get home
for dinner.
25. Could clubs start before school? What about
extra help?
In order to avoid
mitigating the benefits of this change in start times, School Committee will
most likely strongly recommend that teachers and administrators make every
effort to schedule structured activities after school. (Principals may have
some discretion for activities particularly targeted for the morning, like
morning fitness programs.) School Committee understands that one-on-one or
small-group extra help may take place in the morning.
26. Would athletes be pulled for games? Which
ones?
Currently, golf
and alpine skiing leave early for some games. In addition, during playoff
games, some other teams are dismissed early. When dismissal at the High School
moves to 3:00 or 3:05, nordic skiing, cross country, indoor track and track and
field participants would also be dismissed earlier.
27. How do we avoid early dismissals for sports?
We expect to move
approximately 50 games to Saturdays and move some games later in the afternoon. Probably about 250 of the 700 contests would
move from 4:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.
28. Could we have flex time at the end of the
day?
In order to have
a Flex block last period (to hold clubs and let athletes leave early during a
non-academic block), we would have to remove one of the eight periods as a
landing spot for coursework. This would limit the ability of students to
customize their schedules to fit their particular interest, an integral part of
the Wayland High School experience.
29. How do we account for field access for youth
sports?
We will work with
Wayland Recreation to develop the most efficient transitions from school to
town use. In 2020-2021, we should have more flexibility if the Loker fields
project passes at November Town Meeting.
30. Will sports teams be eliminated?
We do not expect to eliminate any sports teams, though a few of the Freshman and JV teams may have a small reduction in the number of games they play.
Measuring Impact
31. How will we measure impacts (sleep, tardies,
absences, grades)?
Currently, the
District collects data on office visits, tardy arrivals, and attendance. We
will review that data annually in an effort to discern the impact of the change
in start times. We will also survey parents (k-5) and students (6-12) annually
to capture the impact of the change on the amount of sleep students get.
Other Efforts to
Address Student Health
32. Have we considered other ways to mitigate
student stress?
The Wayland
Public Schools have taken, and will continue to take, a number of initiatives
to address student stress in addition to changing schedules to give them more
time to sleep. Fo example, this year, Wayland High School began to phase out weighted GPA in an effort to lessen our high school students’ focus on GPA. Over the past few
years, we have also increased our electives offerings to tap into different learning experiences; examined our approach to homework; and expanded the explicit teaching of stress management strategies in our wellness classes. We
will continue this work over the next few years.
33. Will there be an adjustment of homework
expectations?
A K-12
Implementation Committee will start its work after the vote by School
Committee. This group will consider developing recommendations for Admin
Council which could include recommendations for a change in homework practices.
Buses
34. Can we increase bus fees to enable us to
contract for more buses to make transportation more efficient?
Increasing bus
fees would probably cause more parents to drive. Furthermore, if more students
were to ride the bus, the District would actually lose more money because the
bus fees cover only 35% of the cost of the buses.
Other
35. What’s being communicated to elementary
students’ parents?
We are having two
parent forums on October 10 and 17.
36. Can we speak to Weston about the time change?
We have and will
continue to do so. We are consulting with teachers and administrators at the
Weston Public Schools.
Frequently Asked Questions
About Insufficient Sleep and School Start Time
Why do we think changing start times will help? What problem are we trying to solve?
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) issued a Policy Statement on “School Start Times for Adolescents” in August 2014 recommending that high schools and middle schools start no earlier than 8:30am. Numerous other national medical associations, including the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), the American Medical Association (AMA), the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM), have issued similar guidance. They are addressing a nationwide epidemic of insufficient sleep that has serious negative physical and mental health, safety and academic achievement impacts on adolescents. The AAP has pinpointed that delaying school start time “is an effective countermeasure to chronic sleep loss and has a wide range of potential benefits…”
There are both biological and environmental factors at play. Biologically, approximately at the onset of puberty, most adolescents experience delayed release of melatonin, the hormone that regulates sleep and wakefulness. In addition, most adolescents experience a shift in “sleep drive,” which means it takes longer to fall asleep. As such, most adolescents cannot fall asleep before 11 pm.
Environmental factors also contribute to insufficient sleep, including homework, extracurricular activities, after-school jobs and use of technology. While important to also address these environmental factors, they will only take you so far.
The AASM recommends 8.5-9.5 hours of sleep for adolescents. If a teen can’t fall asleep before 11:00 pm, he/she won’t naturally wake before 7:30 am. Since the first buses pick up in Wayland at 6:50 am, it is impossible for most of our middle and high school students to get adequate sleep.
Is this problem truly biological? Why would teenagers have a different circadian rhythm?
Yes, there truly is a biological element to it. Recent research has corroborated a theory that different circadian rhythms at different ages acted to protect a tribe by making it more likely that there would always be a tribe member awake to watch guard. An article on that research is online here, and the study referenced is online here.
Student survey results in Wayland show we have slightly more sleep deprivation than the nationwide average (73% getting less than 8 hours per night vs. 70% nationwide). By the time they reach high school, half of our students are getting 6.5 hours of sleep per night or less, significantly below the AASM recommendation of 8-10 hours.
Of note, Wayland MS/HS start earlier than 55% of MS/HS in MA and earlier than 80% of MS/HS nationwide.
Most people expect this, and even the researchers who did the original studies on this topic were surprised by the results. Most kids do not stay up later, they just get more sleep. Studies have shown that kids get 30-60 minutes more sleep per night when start time is delayed by 60 minutes. (Some articles on this topic are linked online here.) Adolescents’ ability to get to sleep is often limited by when their bodies are biologically ready to shut down, and that doesn’t change when start times change. As such, they will generally go to sleep at about the same time, but are able to sleep longer in the morning. Some studies have shown an even greater increase in sleep duration than the start time delay because kids are more productive when they are awake; they get their homework done faster when they are less sleep deprived and more alert.
There are a number of places to go for more information. We have provided a few links to key information sources on the School Start Time page:
http://www.wayland.k12.ma.us/school_committee/school_start_times
It’s important that you know, and we recognize, that changing start times is not a complete solution to this problem. We are looking at this because we want to provide our children with an environment in which is it possible to get enough sleep. But ensuring that it actually happens is a multi-faceted problem (involving choices about, for example, activities, jobs, course workload and homework) that is also complex, and will require education and commitment from all of us.
Two things have happened since we looked at moving HS/MS times to 8am and Elementary start times to 9am: (1) other schools have made progress on moving their start times late, and (2) we more closely evaluated moving elementary times later, and found that there were many reasons to prefer an earlier rather than a later elementary start time.
Wayland currently runs two tiers of buses - we pick up high school and middle school students with one set of buses and then use those same buses to subsequently pick up the elementary school students. Increasing the number of buses to allow use of a single set of buses for all school levels is extremely expensive -- a rough estimate is $800,000 per year. It’s a decision we could choose to make, but first we would need to be convinced that was the best use of that money and that the taxpayers would support it.
Unlike the extensive research available on start times on middle and high school students, the research on start times for elementary students is limited and conflicting, but generally shows minimal effects of earlier or later start times. Generally, younger children have a morningness preference in their circadian rhythms and "lose steam" by mid-afternoon. As such, earlier start times align to this timing for this age group. In contrast to elementary school children, the research on the detrimental effects of insufficient and mis-timed sleep of early start times on adolescents is absolutely solid, and the stakes are extremely high. We have posted information about elementary start times here.
What about athletics? Will athletes be dismissed early for games? Will teams be affected?
We will retain our policy of minimizing early dismissal for sports (and other activities), and anticipate only a small increase in the numbers of times in which this will be necessary. We expect to be able to work with league towns to ensure there is minimal impacts on sports. It is possible that there will be modest changes necessary to accommodate all the teams requiring specific high-demand fields and facilities. Coordinating with other league teams in this regard is getting easier as more towns have already made the change to a later start.
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What about clubs and other extracurricular activities?
Similar to sports, other towns have found no change in participation in clubs and other extra-curricular activities. These are, fortunately, generally easier to manage as they tend to have fewer issues with conflicts, such as coordinating schedules and competing for fixed resources. Providers adjust schedules to accommodate the new release times.
Impact on child-care arrangements is going to vary for individual families. With young children going to school earlier in the morning, there will be a decreased need for before school care. On the other hand, with elementary school getting out earlier in the afternoon, there will likely be an increased need for after-school care. The District is committed to ensuring additional space will be available in after school BASE. Information about the current BASE program is available at: http://www.wayland.k12.ma.us/district_info/wayland_school_community_programs/b_a_s_e
Like the rest of us, there will be an adjustment for all of our teachers and staff. For some, the new schedules will be preferable, for others they will be less preferred. Other districts that have implemented start time delays have worried about potential teacher turnover, but anecdotal evidence suggests this does not typically occur.
METCO transportation always has been and will continue to be a challenge. Boston resident students have a long commute both in the morning and afternoon, and their day is considerably longer than their Wayland counterparts. That will continue to be the case. However, the Boston-based high school and middle school students are currently the most at-risk for sleep-deprivation among our students as they are the earliest risers in the system, and stand the most to gain from a delay in start times.
The District has not yet fully studied the impact to traffic flows in town. Experience in other districts that have implemented delayed starts show that traffic patterns adjust over time to the new time.
The specifics of what will and will not occur before school after start time change has not been fully worked out. We expect some extra help will occur before school, but will work to generally minimize the amount of before school activity, as this would work to offset the benefits of making start time change.
There are a number of hard statistics that are already collected every year that will provide some useful measures of the impact of start time change. For example, we collect data on absenteeism, tardies, disciplinary measures such as office visits and suspensions, and academic measures such as grades and standardized test scores. We also get data on mental health and behavior measures from the Youth Behavior Risk Survey, and can survey the students ourselves for additional measures.