Students compare positives, negatives of new bell schedule

Next year’s bell schedule is not convenient for students. Zero hour will be starting 35 minutes earlier, forcing students to wake up earlier than what they are used to.

According to nationwidechildrens.org, teenagers need at least nine and a half hours of sleep every night. On average, teenagers get only seven hours of sleep and lack of sleep can cause grades to drop dramatically. According to a study done by universe.byu.edu, students who have slept more hours have also achieved better grades than the students who slept less.

The best cure for fatigue is sleep according to health.howstuffworks.com. The new bell schedule will require students to wake up earlier so that they can make it to zero hour, resulting in lower grades and less energetic students.

As high schoolers receive driving privileges, parents often have them drive other siblings to school. Most high school students have younger siblings. There is just no way that someone could get siblings to school on time and then make it to zero hour.

Incoming freshmen are at the age of getting a learners permit. This means that they cannot drive younger siblings to school without a parent. If a parent is unavailable to take a student to school that early in the morning, it results in another inconsistency that the new bell schedule will cause.

As a result of the early start time, students are dropping out of zero hour classes because it does not fit pre-planned schedules leading to fewer students in the fine arts programs. Without students, teachers cannot put on shows for Newton citizens to enjoy.

With the pay cuts that schools already face, paying for the requirements comes up as unimportant compared to all of the other renovations that the school already needs. If the school cannot pay for things that the performing arts needs and enrollment in these classes decrease, there is a higher chance the programs will get cut all together.

Teachers already have an education or else they would not have the job in the first place. The staff should focus on students education instead of trying to make it easier for each other.