9 ms·

What are the downsides of having middle and high schools start at 9am with elementary schools starting at 7:30am? Basically a reversal of what is in place today

What are the downsides of having middle and high schools start at 9am with elementary schools starting at 7:30am? Basically a reversal of what is in place today. Just go through with one fell swoop and swap every single starting time.

frockington 8y ago
Allegedly the problem was that parents had to quit their jobs to adjust to the schedule. To me this seems easily solved by having little Jimmy walk or take the bus to school. No need for parental involvement in those cases as 12 year olds are capable of getting off and on a bus without supervision
- Broken_Hippo 8y ago
  It is more because older children can watch the younger ones after school. A 15-year old can watch the 8 year old for an hour or so after school. the 12 year old might be able to, but can definitely stay home alone. An 8 year old needs care. The later start minimises this with a "traditional" work schedule.
  - hammock 8y ago
    How many households have a 15 year old and an 8 year old?
    - Broken_Hippo 8y ago
      Im sure google has precise answers and it has changed since it became a standard arguement 30+ years ago, but I do imagine plenty. 3 years between kids and having 3 kids gets you pretty close (the 8 year old would have a 14 year old sibling). I personally have siblings 6 and 11 years younger than me. The bigger issue with me answering is that not only am I 40, but I'm childless and living in a different country than I grew up in. I*m not sure what the standard family actually is right not in different parts of the country.
- sopooneo 8y ago
  I used to work in Boston Public Schools, so I have some context that may or may not address your point. One issue is that for the most part, Boston does not do "neighborhood schools" anymore. So a kid could easily have a 1.5 hour* walk to get to school. However, your point about busses largely stands because, at least for high school kids, the district mostly partners with public transit to bus the kids around. * Downtown Boston is tiny. But the actual official city is pretty big, and dips much further south than many people realize.
- s73v3r_ 8y ago
  You may want to check out some of the neighborhoods involved before you make such a statement.
AllegedAlec 8y ago
Where do you live that schools start at 07:30? Also, it'd have a huge side effect: middle/high schools kids can go to school on their own. Many kids at elementary schools cannot. With this, you force parents to drop their kids off much earlier, which would fuck with their work schedules.
- Broken_Hippo 8y ago
  I'm from indiana. 7:30 is a common starting time. I'll add that most parents in the areas I lived didnt take their kids to school. A lot kids take the bus, either from home or from a daycare. Additionally, many schppls offer before and after school care, usually starting at 7 or 7:30 for the parents that will pay for it.
  - scentoni 8y ago
    Indiana has the most complicated time zone history of any state in the US because of a long-running battle between those who want to be on Eastern time for synchronization with the East Coast and those who want to be on Central time because that’s where the state’s longitude puts it.
    - Broken_Hippo 8y ago
      Yup. As far as I've witnessed, syncing with either Ohio/Eastern time or Illinois (Central time) is the main bits of the matter. Northwest Indiana is pretty in line with Chicago: Terre Haute (southwest-ish) more on Illinoise. Lafayette (central west/Purdue area) is in between. Central Indiana doesn't matter so much due to Indianapolis. Southeast is more in line with Louisville and the entire eastern edge, once you are outside of the easily Indianapolis area, is more reliant on larger Ohio cities. (Cincinatti, Cleveland, and to a smaller extent, Toledo). Ft Wayne I'm not as sure about, though I think they'd rather stay in line with Ohio's time. I*m not entirely sure why it is a big deal: Either way, it is only an hour at this point. To be fair, it was more difficult before indiana adopted Daylight Savings time.
- ashelmire 8y ago
lodrein 8y ago
It may seem feasible on the long run. Indeed, it can be easier for the parents of the new children to adapt their schedule. But it can be very hard for the parents that previously chose the school (partly) because of its start time, and adapted their own life & work schedule around this time.
- kidofthestreets 8y ago
  A "two-tier" system with 7:30 and 9:00 starts is interesting - one thing to consider, though, is that many, many families in Boston would like for school to start between 8:00 and 8:30. So a solution with zero students starting in this window might be unpopular.

frockington 8y ago

Allegedly the problem was that parents had to quit their jobs to adjust to the schedule. To me this seems easily solved by having little Jimmy walk or take the bus to school. No need for parental involvement in those cases as 12 year olds are capable of getting off and on a bus without supervision

Broken_Hippo 8y ago
It is more because older children can watch the younger ones after school. A 15-year old can watch the 8 year old for an hour or so after school. the 12 year old might be able to, but can definitely stay home alone. An 8 year old needs care. The later start minimises this with a "traditional" work schedule.
- hammock 8y ago
  How many households have a 15 year old and an 8 year old?
  - Broken_Hippo 8y ago
    Im sure google has precise answers and it has changed since it became a standard arguement 30+ years ago, but I do imagine plenty. 3 years between kids and having 3 kids gets you pretty close (the 8 year old would have a 14 year old sibling). I personally have siblings 6 and 11 years younger than me. The bigger issue with me answering is that not only am I 40, but I'm childless and living in a different country than I grew up in. I*m not sure what the standard family actually is right not in different parts of the country.
sopooneo 8y ago
I used to work in Boston Public Schools, so I have some context that may or may not address your point. One issue is that for the most part, Boston does not do "neighborhood schools" anymore. So a kid could easily have a 1.5 hour* walk to get to school. However, your point about busses largely stands because, at least for high school kids, the district mostly partners with public transit to bus the kids around. * Downtown Boston is tiny. But the actual official city is pretty big, and dips much further south than many people realize.
s73v3r_ 8y ago
You may want to check out some of the neighborhoods involved before you make such a statement.

AllegedAlec 8y ago

Where do you live that schools start at 07:30? Also, it'd have a huge side effect: middle/high schools kids can go to school on their own. Many kids at elementary schools cannot. With this, you force parents to drop their kids off much earlier, which would fuck with their work schedules.

Broken_Hippo 8y ago
I'm from indiana. 7:30 is a common starting time. I'll add that most parents in the areas I lived didnt take their kids to school. A lot kids take the bus, either from home or from a daycare. Additionally, many schppls offer before and after school care, usually starting at 7 or 7:30 for the parents that will pay for it.
- scentoni 8y ago
  Indiana has the most complicated time zone history of any state in the US because of a long-running battle between those who want to be on Eastern time for synchronization with the East Coast and those who want to be on Central time because that’s where the state’s longitude puts it.
  - Broken_Hippo 8y ago
    Yup. As far as I've witnessed, syncing with either Ohio/Eastern time or Illinois (Central time) is the main bits of the matter. Northwest Indiana is pretty in line with Chicago: Terre Haute (southwest-ish) more on Illinoise. Lafayette (central west/Purdue area) is in between. Central Indiana doesn't matter so much due to Indianapolis. Southeast is more in line with Louisville and the entire eastern edge, once you are outside of the easily Indianapolis area, is more reliant on larger Ohio cities. (Cincinatti, Cleveland, and to a smaller extent, Toledo). Ft Wayne I'm not as sure about, though I think they'd rather stay in line with Ohio's time. I*m not entirely sure why it is a big deal: Either way, it is only an hour at this point. To be fair, it was more difficult before indiana adopted Daylight Savings time.
ashelmire 8y ago

lodrein 8y ago

It may seem feasible on the long run. Indeed, it can be easier for the parents of the new children to adapt their schedule. But it can be very hard for the parents that previously chose the school (partly) because of its start time, and adapted their own life & work schedule around this time.

kidofthestreets 8y ago
A "two-tier" system with 7:30 and 9:00 starts is interesting - one thing to consider, though, is that many, many families in Boston would like for school to start between 8:00 and 8:30. So a solution with zero students starting in this window might be unpopular.