英语精听材料：Later School Start Time Leads To Better StudentsA half-hour delay in school start time led 201 Rhode Island high school students to be better behaved and happier. Cynthia Graber reports.
+ l3 C: b" b1 U
# B) D' [$ {* i0 G Z! @Teachers get exasperated at students—they don’t pay attention, they’re sleepy, they have bad attitudes. But improvement could be a matter of timing—just start school later. That’s according to a study in the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine. [Citation to come.]
* f9 Q9 ^, D5 N- C
! c7 |& x# X) _( V2 I& G0 GBeginning at adolescence, kids have what’s called a delayed sleep phase, where they start sleep later and sleep later in the morning. And they need plenty—about nine-and-a-quarter hours a night. & d- ^& F) ~ L. h% Q' D
9 b/ K7 F0 J# ~) n) L
The researchers evaluated 201 Rhode Island high school students whose school pushed back its start time from 8 to 8:30. The kids completed a sleep habits survey before and after the time change.
" K# x: _4 }/ w" X. \3 a% y& A
: z$ n4 g. P# l# a6 x1 m, H0 f/ Q' ^After the delayed start, the percentage of students who said they got at least eight hours of sleep a night jumped from about 16 to 55 percent. Class attendance improved, and there were fewer visits to the health center for fatigue-related complaints. Plus, the number of students who said they felt unhappy, depressed, annoyed or irritated dropped significantly.
# X) J0 z$ p* L$ p& ~* C X' t! n3 t: U, _- r
Before the study, teachers, coaches and administrators all resisted the later start. After, nearly all voted to keep it in place. A half-hour change for happier, better students? Seems like a good time for all. |
发表于 2012-8-14 23:06:24
