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Snooze or Lose: High School Start Times and Academic Achievement

Author

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  • Jeffrey A. Groen
  • Sabrina Wulff Pabilonia

Abstract

Many U.S. high schools start classes before 8:00 A.M., yet research on circadian rhythms suggests that teenagers’ biological clocks shift to later in the day. This paper conducts the first study using a nationally representative dataset to examine the effect of high school start times on longer-run academic outcomes, including college-entrance exam scores and college attendance. Results indicate that female students who attend schools with later start times get more sleep and score higher on the SAT. Male students also get more sleep when their schools start later, but they are less likely to attend a four-year college.

Suggested Citation

  • Jeffrey A. Groen & Sabrina Wulff Pabilonia, 2015. "Snooze or Lose: High School Start Times and Academic Achievement," Economic Working Papers 484, Bureau of Labor Statistics.
    • Handle: RePEc:bls:wpaper:484
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    File URL: https://www.bls.gov/osmr/research-papers/2015/pdf/ec150060.pdf
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    Cited by:

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    2. Caetano, Carolina & Caetano, Gregorio & Nielsen, Eric, 2024. "Are children spending too much time on enrichment activities?," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 98(C).
    3. Nguyen, Ha Trong & Zubrick, Stephen R. & Mitrou, Francis, 2024. "Daylight duration and time allocation of children and adolescents," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 55(C).
    4. BAI Yu & TANAKA Ryuichi, 2024. "A Long-run Consequence of Relaxation-Oriented Education on Labor Market Performance," Discussion papers 24003, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI).
    5. Charlene Marie Kalenkoski & Sabrina Wulff Pabilonia, 2023. "Parental disability and teenagers’ time allocation," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 21(4), pages 1379-1407, December.
    6. Nguyen, Ha Trong & Zubrick, Stephen R. & Mitrou, Francis, 2024. "The effects of sleep duration on child health and development," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 221(C), pages 35-51.
    7. Pabilonia, Sabrina Wulff & Vernon, Victoria, 2020. "Telework and Time Use in the United States," IZA Discussion Papers 13260, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    8. Anthony LokTing Yim, 2023. "How Early Morning Classes Change Academic Trajectories: Evidence from a Natural Experiment," Purdue University Economics Working Papers 1334, Purdue University, Department of Economics.
    9. Lenard, Matthew & Morrill, Melinda Sandler & Westall, John, 2020. "High school start times and student achievement: Looking beyond test scores," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 76(C).
    10. Sabrina Wulff Pabilonia & Victoria Vernon, 2022. "Telework, Wages, and Time Use in the United States," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 20(3), pages 687-734, September.
    11. Williams, Kevin M. & Shapiro, Teny Maghakian, 2018. "Academic achievement across the day: Evidence from randomized class schedules," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 67(C), pages 158-170.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • I12 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health Behavior
    • I20 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - General
    • J22 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Time Allocation and Labor Supply

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