Starting classes later good for students, US study shows

MANILA, Philippines–Realizing that most students are not fully rested when they have to come to school very early, some private schools in Metro Manila will delay the start of their classes.

The Federation of Associations of Private Schools and Administrators (Fapsa), with 2,000 member schools, has urged all schools—from pre-school up to high school—to begin classes no earlier than 8 a.m. to allow their students to get enough rest and be prepared to tackle their lessons.

Fapsa president Eleazardo Kasilag said schools should heed a recent report by the American Academy of Pediatrics suggesting that sleep-deprived teenagers needed to start school later.

“This is very important. We are changing the curriculum, giving the teachers training to improve learning. But if the students cannot absorb the lesson because they are not fully awake, our innovations are wasted,” Kasilag told the Inquirer.

Kasilag said schools that began classes at 6 a.m. found that the first two hours had to be devoted to keeping the students awake since most of them only had a few hours’ sleep the night before.

Kasilag said students were put at a further disadvantage since core subjects like English, Math, Science, Filipino and History were taught in the first hours of classes.