Schools in many places have postponed school start times! Don’t let “sleep more” turn into a false burden reduction

Recently, some netizens in Nanjing, Jiangsu Province posted online the school’s arrangement of postponing the school start time to 7:20, sparking heated discussions. Many parents admit that their children may not be able to go to bed early because of this, but they will still have an extra 20 minutes of rest time in the morning.

Delaying arrival at school not only sets the alarm clock dial, but also sets long-lasting educational concepts. For a long time, getting up early has been regarded as synonymous with diligence, and this adjustment reflects the gradual shift from "competition to get ahead" to "respect for growth" in educational concepts.

In fact, this adjustment is not an isolated case. Yudong No. 2 Primary School in Banan District, Chongqing has postponed the arrival time of first- and second-grade students to 9:00 a.m., and postponed the first class to 9:45. According to reports, the school’s “9 o’clock arrival” pilot program has been implemented smoothly for nearly two years.

On October 31, Chengdu Montpellier Primary School also released an "October Letter to Parents", which mentioned that starting from the beginning of winter on November 7, students' arrival time will be adjusted to 8:40.

A series of measures send the same signal that students' adequate sleep and physical and mental health should receive further attention.

But just adjusting the morning school schedule is not enough. If the workload of homework does not decrease and the anxiety about going to school persists, the time to arrive at school will be moved back, and the time for bed will be postponed accordingly. The so-called "sleep more" is an illusion, but it is just passing on the suffering of getting up early to the long night.

The deeper shackles are actually the evaluation yardstick engraved in some people's minds, that is, the longer they stay in school, the better they learn. The implementation standards of each school are uneven, and the time difference can easily lead to new comparisons. As long as this concept does not change, the so-called delayed school time will soon be quietly offset by extracurricular tutoring and extra homework.

In addition, the practical difficulties of dual-income families cannot be ignored. The delay in arriving at school inevitably leaves many parents in a dilemma when it comes to pick-up and drop-off arrangements during the morning rush hour. Therefore, returning early morning to children is by no means a simple “one-size-fits-all” time change. The implementation process must take into account multiple realities and advance according to local conditions.

In fact, relevant documents have already given the answer. The "Notice of the General Office of the Ministry of Education on Further Strengthening the Sleep Management of Primary and Secondary School Students" clearly states that based on the physical and mental development characteristics of students of different ages, primary school students should sleep for 10 hours a day, junior high school students should sleep for 9 hours, and high school students should sleep for 8 hours; the "Education Law of the People's Republic of China" also clearly protects the legitimate rights and interests of educated persons. Therefore, system reform cannot be superficial and only focus on "when to arrive at school". We must also dare to touch the core of academic load and evaluation methods.

Set the alarm clock and change your mindset. Delaying schooling should not be a "gust of wind". The real change starts with abandoning the "time worship" and replacing competing time with competing for efficiency. Don’t let this heart-warming adjustment return to its original shape after a few days of excitement. We hope that home-school communities will work together to remove the shackles of educational concepts and overcome practical difficulties, making "sleeping enough" the norm, allowing children to wake up calmly and study efficiently.