7:30 AM start for DPS High Schoolers?

**Zacha341** · September-03-09, 08:37 AM

This school year was slated to have HS kids start classes at 7:30 AM. Now DPS will resume the 8:00 AM start time, January 22, 2009. Do you think it was a good move to implement a 7:30 AM in the first place? See article below:

Bobb Makes Decision After Listening To Students

High School Start Time Moved Back
http://www.clickondetroit.com/news/20692690/detail.html

POSTED: Wednesday, September 2, 2009
DETROIT -- Public high school students in Detroit can sleep in a little later
beginning in January.

District emergency financial manager Robert Bobb listened to a group of several dozen students Tuesday and moved the morning bell back 30 minutes.

The students were taking part in a roundtable discussion that included comedian Bill Cosby. They said 7:30 a.m. was too early. Bobb agreed to have morning classes start at 8 a.m. by the second semester, which begins Jan. 22.

Cosby was in Detroit to support a student retention campaign. Classes start
Tuesday.

Bobb said in a release Wednesday that "having well-rested students who come to school prepared to learn" is a priority. Start times for elementary and middle
school students vary.

**softailrider** · September-03-09, 09:11 AM

Goo idea to start at 8:00? Hell yes, anything that gets more asses in the seats.

**Roq** · September-03-09, 09:26 AM

This is a good idea. I think the earlier start times are for the administration and teacher's benefit, not for the kids.

**Thames** · September-03-09, 09:32 AM

Originally Posted by Roq

This is a good idea. I think the earlier start times are for the administration and teacher's benefit, not for the kids.

I thought it had to do with the buses. The older kids get dropped off first, then they go back for the younger ones.

**Patrick** · September-03-09, 09:41 AM

I started HS at 7:25 all 4 years in Warren Con. Schools. It was good because you got home early BUT it affected my performance.

**EastsideAl** · September-03-09, 10:11 AM

Wow, way back when I was in school [[and dinosaurs roamed the earth) I don't remember ever starting before 8:45, and even that was far too often a stretch for my late rising ass, with my morning class grades really suffering. I don't think I'd have ever made graduation if I was supposed to start at 7:30. As it was, it was already a pretty close thing.

**DetroitTeacher** · September-03-09, 11:51 AM

Teachers were NOT agreeable to the 7:30 start time [[I heard much grumbling from staff at the announcement). Personally, I don't care if it's 7:30 or 8:00 since I get to work about 7:00 anyway. I believe the reasoning behind the earlier start and end times is because many high schoolers have to get younger siblings from elem and middle schools which let out earlier. Many kids skip their 7th hour so they can be on time to get the younger kids. While everyone knows that this is not a valid reason for skipping 7th hour, it is reality. As far as the bus situation goes, high schools don't have buses except for Special Ed kids [[at least in DPS) and vo-tech transportation.

**Ray1936** · September-03-09, 06:24 PM

In the real world, your job often requires you to work days, afternoons, and graveyards. Sometimes you have to start at 3:00 a.m. Students may as well get used to it. Teachers apparently can't.

**eastsidechris** · September-03-09, 06:49 PM

Ray and others, if any Detroit teachers are upset about the earlier start [[which is only going to be for the first semester), it is because we only found out about it a week before school began. For the teachers who have to coordinate dropping off their own kids to daycare or school, the timing was not very considerate.

95% of the time, I'm in my classroom at least 15 minutes before teachers even need to report, so I imagine I'll just have to get up a little earlier to get to my school at the prescribed time.

Had Bobb asked the teachers about the potential change, I think the majority of us would have told him it was not a good idea because so many kids take the public bus to school. I don't like the idea of seeing students out at the bus stop at 6:30 [[and even earlier), especially when it's dark and cold.

Bobb has done a tremendous job of balancing the books, but the starting time decision shows that he's out of touch as to what actually goes on in the district.

**DetroitTeacher** · September-03-09, 08:48 PM

I overheard the start time change about a month ago so I wasn't shocked. Officially, we heard about it on Monday when we reported for our first day. I did email the Keith Johnson about it when I heard about it and asked if it was just a rumor. He didn't know. The next day he emailed me back and said it was true. It would have been really nice for teachers to have had some advanced warning so that we can plan accordingly, like eastsidechris stated. I don't think we were grumbling at the TIME as much as the short notice.

**reddog289** · September-03-09, 09:23 PM

When I went to high school I had 1rst hour drop 2 out of 3 years. Only because I hate getting up. Yet almost 25yrs later I know what Ray means. I work for the schools and truthfully my starting time is never set in stone.And to confuse matters I split my time between two schools. Sometimes I work days and at one of the schools the classes start 30 min later then the other.
My "daughter" is at the bus stop usually before 6:30 am.and she has to be. We would like the extra 1/2 hour of sleep. Yet it seems to me that if they move up the start time and it doesn't help what are they gonna do? Have it to where school starts at 12pm when the kids wake up?

**jt1** · September-03-09, 10:19 PM

Originally Posted by Ray1936

In the real world, your job often requires you to work days, afternoons, and graveyards. Sometimes you have to start at 3:00 a.m. Students may as well get used to it. Teachers apparently can't.

Most jobs in the 'real world' do not require you to work different shifts or start at 3:00 a.m.

Your bs shot at the teachers is uncalled for.