POV Contest

Should the Middle School start earlier and the High Schools start later?


Our high school starts at 7:30am and our middle school starts at 9:00am. Some people had an idea to switch the times and make the middle school kids go earlier and the high school kids go later. Now, as a high school student, I wouldn’t mind starting a little later and getting more sleep but with this change, everybody’s lives would be changed. If we started school at 9:00, we would be let out at 3:30. Varsity sports games start at 4:00 and JV sports start around 6:15. Other schools would still be getting out of school at 2:00. They would be ready to come on over to the game and we would still be hitting the books. Same for the middle school kids. They would be getting out at 2:00 and ready to play for sports. They other middle schools wouldn’t get out until 3:30 and then what would the students do? Take the bus home and then have your parents drive you back?

Another reason that it wouldn’t work is because most high school students have jobs. Getting out at 3:30, doing homework and going to a job would be too much for a high school student. Being in middle school, you go home, do your homework, maybe doing sports or after school activities but really don’t have a responsibility to go to work. Also, we high school kids are waiting out side for the bus at 6:50 in the cold, dark morning. Why would you want an 11, 12, 13 year old outside that early? My mom has even said that she doesn’t like me standing outside that early in the morning and I’m almost 16!


Another thing is that the high school kids get home earlier so that they can get their younger siblings off the bus or at school if their parents work and their not there to get them. I know sometimes that I have to get my sister off the bus because my mom had to go and run an errand or if she had to do something for school and what not. True the middle schoolers are kind of old enough to watch little kids but why would you want to hold them responsible for that much work? It’s just easier for the high school student to do the work.


Although our city has voted no on the situation, I think that the whole idea was pointless. Honestly, where are you going to find parents that want their middle schoolers leaving the house at 6:50? Maybe unless they work an earlier job and need to leave at that time but other than that why would they vote yes? It would not have passed no matter how you show a person the facts. The people in this county were not going to vote yes, there was just no way. The high school time is going to stay at 7:30 and the middle school is stay at 9:00 just like everything should be.