Making the social media rounds today is some news that the American Academy of Pediatrics now recommends school should start later for teenagers. The AAP says an 8:30 a.m. start time, at least, would be ideal for teenage brains. That's a good hour later than most high schools around the state begin their first classes.
That school starts too early is not news to millions of teenagers, their parents, or especially their teachers. It's not a huge surprise that kids don't learn well when they're not awake.
Science doesn't often guide our policies around public education, either how it's scheduled (we all know a three-month summer break doesn't really make educational sense), or what happens in the classroom.
Could something be changing? The push for early childhood education gained momentum primarily because the science behind these interventions for very young children is just so compelling. We know many schools are paying attention to the science behind how children learn best, and some of them have the flexibility to act on it.
So you tell us, which schools are doing innovative things? Are these experiments paying off in student engagement and achievement?
Is it project-based learning, a year-round schedule, or something we've never heard of?
Use the comments, Facebook or an email to alvarez@michiganradio.org to clue us in. We'll take a look and put together a wrap-up.