MIT researchers hired to help figure out new school start times in Boston

BOSTON — Massachusetts Institute of Technology is lending a helping hand as Boston mulls moving the start time for schools in the district.

Boston 25 News has been following this story for more than a year. Advocates said kids need the extra sleep, but others argue that it will just create a ripple effect of other problems.

According to the Boston Globe, the idea of changing school start times has been discussed for a while, and school officials have been working with researchers at MIT to draft a plan.

Currently Boston has 125 city-run schools. Most of them start their school day at 7:30 a.m., 8:30 a.m. or 9:30 a.m.

Changing school start times would seek to correct two problems that currently exist.

Students in grades K-8 who attend schools that begin mid-morning get out during the height of the afternoon rush, and often walk home in the dark.

But high school students start their school day early, fighting their natural sleep cycle in the process.

A school committee policy from 1990 states that start times must be changed every five yeras, but they're seeking to change that. In fact, the school committee has been very open about not following that rule in recent years.

Officials will present the proposal on policy change Wednesday night, and won't announce any specific time changes until the first week of December. Proposals for new policies presented at the committee meeting Wednesday night could affect that decision.

Officials do agree that it’s unlikely that everyone will be happy with changes to school start times.

Some parents and students worry that it could affect before or after school activities.

For the city’s part, they would need to work out the issue of busing, which is complicated.

And even if you don’t have a student in the Boston school system, you would likely be affected by changes in traffic patterns.

Cox Media Group