I've always sat on the fence with this. There is research re: the average teenager's brain and sleep patterns. But my kid likes 6am, and lots of kids in my neighbourhood are responsible for younger sibling pick-up (elementary starts later) or have jobs to get to.
I had a colleague whose kid's high school switched to later starts. Absenteeism and missing classes (especially first period) increased. Turns out parents are crucial in getting kids out the door and to school on time. Later start times didn't align with work schedules, so more absenteeism
It was an interesting wrinkle I didn't expect.
That makes total sense
I think part of the problem is that, culturally, it's considered normal for teens to be night owls, and it's considered normal that they hate getting up in the morning. The thing is, if your teen goes to bed a 10pm (boring, I know), they can get up at 7am to go to school.
My daughter’s high school starts at the same time as elementary, but ends later, so no possibility of afterschool pickup of her sister anyway 😢