Teens to sleep late in ‘woke’ California

The 17th-century adage that the early bird catches the worm obviously does not find favour with the younger generation. Who wants worms anyway, that too, early in the morning? Such exertions are only for the birds, they would correctly argue.

From the 15th century onwards, at least English-speaking children have also obediently imbibed the ‘early to bed, early to rise, makes a person healthy, wealthy and wise’ axiom. Now, it seems, to use another proverb, parents and teachers have been barking up the wrong tree, as recent research has shown children who sleep longer grow up healthier and are more likely to actually finish school.

It would seem that the findings are solid enough to not only put to rest a five-century-old shibboleth but also for ‘woke’ California to become the first US state to legislate that all middle and high schools cannot open before 8:30 am. All it needs now is the governor’s signature and teens can officially snooze longer. Curiously, the rule will not apply to rural schools.


The bill is based on research that supposedly proves that because teenagers’ natural sleep schedules clash with early school timings, it leads to sleep deprivation and consequent risks of poor grades, depression and accidents. But, surely, these could have more to do with why they sleep late rather than because they get up early?