Exercise 16, p. 42
Paragraph 1
Educational officials should introduce a 10-am school-starting time because it will lead to better educational outcomes for teenagers. This is because, according to experts such as Mr Swanson, the later time will complement teenagers’ biological rhythms and enable them to work more productively, and reduce fatigue. (explain, evidence, expert opinion/psychologist, quotes, statistics)
Paragraph 2
Moreover, a later start would definitely assist students who travel large distances to school or who have before-school curriculum activities. (This will also positively impact on traffic loads to and from school.)
Rebuttal
Opponents criticise the proposal on the grounds that it will not make teenagers more productive and that there is a danger that they will simply waste their extra time on sleep and frivolous activities. However, this is not the advice from main counsellors who believe that a forward-thinking school would certainly do its best to address educational outcomes that are affected by fatigue-related issues.
OR
Paragraph 1
A later school starting time will not make teenagers more productive. They will just use the time as an excuse to go to bed later, surf the net, “chat” and waste time, and perhaps even do less homework. Perhaps if teenagers are getting sleepier later then they may be just in a poor sleeping cycle. They need to go to bed at a reasonable hour so that they are not sleep deprived etc
Paragraph 2
A later start would also lead to a very inconvenient finish time, which may affect transport and after-school curriculum activities.
(evidence/ explanation); it would coincide with peak hour traffic, resulting in more chaos on roads and more chaos on the train tracks. This could definitely clash with sport or after-school activities.
Rebuttal
Advocates of the proposal believe that teenagers are naturally sleepier later and so it will address the problem of sleep deprivation. However, this view panders to teenagers’ sense of bravado that a later sleeping time reflects a healthy dose of stamina. Owing to such an attitude, they will become lost in a self-defeating cycle of lethargy.
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