Super Bowl LX: The continuation of a worldwide American football tradition viewed by millions every year. If so many families stay up late watching this game annually, it begs the question: should there be a delay on the following Monday? There absolutely should be.
The Super Bowl happens on a Sunday evening, beginning at 6:30 p.m. ET. With the event averaging between three and four hours, including advertisements and the halftime show, it is predicted to conclude at around 10:07 p.m. ET, but ranging from around 9:45 to 10:30.
Football games, especially ones as widespread as the Super Bowl, are commonly enjoyed with family and friends. Many people throw a party or attend one to watch and celebrate the event. If the game only ends somewhere around 10 p.m., these people may still be at family or friends’ houses enjoying the company, or possibly having after-parties. This could ultimately lead to later times students go to sleep if they need to help clean up the party, or drive/get a ride home and prepare for bed. After all of this, it could be 11 p.m. by the time students fall asleep. On top of this, most high schoolers procrastinate doing their homework. For the weekend, this could mean getting assignments done on Sunday evening–and in this case–after the already-late run time of the Super Bowl. Add this to the already 11 p.m. bedtime, and it could be midnight or even later by the time students fall asleep.
Others may argue that the homework issue could be quickly solved if students did their homework earlier in the weekend. However, this may be difficult if students need to use the weekend for a time of relaxation and a break from the school week. There is also a chance that students may be busy with various activities and extracurriculars or miscellaneous tasks such as sports and spending time with family and friends. While doing these things, they may not have the opportunity to do their homework until Sunday night.
Sleep is very important in the life of a high school student. The average high schooler, and teens overall, needs about nine hours of sleep each night. If students are falling asleep late at night or midnight, they simply will not have time for nine hours of sleep. When considering when students need to wake up to prepare for the day and catch the bus, many may be getting only six to seven hours of rest every night. This is hardly a good way to start off the school week, considering the day after the Super Bowl is a Monday.
Now, considering students may not be getting as much sleep as they should, having a delay on the following Monday would help with this. An extra two hours before the school day starts would allow students more time to sleep and reenergize for the school week ahead. If students do not get the proper amount of sleep, focus levels will be much lower during class as they will feel tired and not rested enough, but the extra two hours will allow for sleep to mitigate this. This also allows car riders’ parents to get enough sleep the night before to drive them to school in the morning, as well as bus drivers. Overall, one extra two-hour-delay in our school year the day after the Super Bowl does not hurt; in fact, it only helps students work more productively in the long run.
