The school schedule is mostly sustainable, but there are things Park can improve on to better student and staff mental wellbeing. Park should work on prioritizing mental and physical health over academics and time efficiency. 

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have said that starting school before 8:30 a.m. is unhealthy for students. Starting at an unreasonable time can lead to depression, substance abuse and a struggle with completing assignments. 

Although Park starts the school day at 8:25 a.m., Park could push back this start time to improve students’ mental and physical health. By starting the day at 9:00 a.m., just 35 minutes later, students can have extra time to sleep or get ready, which can greatly improve student preparedness.

Not only is starting the day too early detrimental to physical and mental health, but having a seven period day is also difficult for most students to manage. The system we currently have at Park is not efficient and makes it hard for teachers to really get into content when class ends in less than an hour. 

Having a four period day — versus seven — gives teachers more time to teach their subjects and answer important questions in person. It also gives students more time to absorb information and have longer work time, reducing homework and distractions from extra-curricular activities and more. 

Squeezing four periods into one day leaves more room for longer passing time and lunch breaks. Park’s current schedule does not allow a normal amount of time to eat and talk with friends during lunch, which makes it incredibly difficult to get proper nutrition. Socialization is extremely important in developing students’ brains, being able to talk with your friends and laugh in between the day helps break up the heavy topics we learn about every period. When lunch is too short to eat and talk, people end up choosing one over the other and it’s usually socialization. 

Having only five minutes to transition between classes or use the bathroom is not enough time for a normal person. This wouldn’t be such a problem if we could go to the bathroom in the first ten minutes of class, but because of the new rules we cannot. Not to mention, our bathrooms are very spread out around the school and it’s hard to get from where your class is, to a bathroom you can use. 

Changing our schedule so we start at 9 a.m. and go until 3:45 p.m. and switching our seven period day to a four period day will be better for students and staff. It would allow for students and teachers alike to have an easier day and gives students more time to prioritize their wellbeing.