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MASHPEE – Mashpee public schools are exploring the possibility of adjusting the start times for the school day.
The process is in the early stages as a 16 member School Start Time Committee was formed and has held three meetings to discuss the benefits and drawbacks of having older students start school later.
“It’s a good collection of members of the school community and including parents,” said Patty DeBoer, Mashpee’s acting superintendent, and start time committee member. “We have all taken on tasks of researching, there is quite a bit of research out there, on the benefits of a later school start time for adolescence.”
The idea to look at school start times came from a few members of the school committee and staff at the middle-high school to determine if a later start for the older students would have an impact on improving student learning.
The start time committee is tasked with making a recommendation to the school committee who will make the final decision.
If approved, any change to the start times would not happen until the 2017-2018 school year.
DeBoer believes having the older students start later makes a great deal of sense after reviewing research.
“Based on anecdotal information from teachers at those levels they feel that they will see a difference,” she said.
The start time committee has started a blogpost website and DeBoer said updates will be posted weekly. That website can be found here.
Surveys will be going out to staff and parents of the next few weeks.
“Then we will have a series of forums or meetings where parents can come and express their opinion,” DeBoer said.
The start time committee’s next meeting is March 30 at the Quashnet Elementary School at 3:30 p.m. and the public is welcome to attend.
By BRIAN MERCHANT, CapeCod.com NewsCenter
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