DENVER (KDVR) — A new study shows students who learn remotely get better sleep than students who attend class in-person.
The study’s lead author is a pediatric psychologist at National Jewish Health in Denver.
With the help of social media, researchers were able to collect sleep data from more than 5,200 sixth through twelfth graders.
According to the study, 37% of high school students said they received sufficient sleep on days they were in the classroom.
For students taking live online courses, nearly 57% of high school students reported a good night of rest.
On average, researchers say middle school students need nine hours of sleep and high school students need about eight.
Of course, being able to have a later start time without having to get up early to catch the bus served as a benefit for remote learners.
“Students who did not have any sort of scheduled instruction, were getting on average an extra hour and a half sleep per night, as opposed to students who had to wake up and be in class at school each day. So it really speaks to that value of being able to sleep in,” said Dr. Lisa Meltzer, a pediatric psychologist at National Jewish Health.
Remote learners who didn’t to start their online course work at a set time, but rather on their own schedule received more sleep, according to the study.
The ideal start time recommendation for high schools and middle schools from the American Academy of Pediatrics is no earlier than 8:30 a.m.